


Tomorrow Never Dies

by Seeingredfics



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Twins, F/M, Glenn's sister, Negan Being Negan (Walking Dead), Shy!Daryl, awkward!daryl
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-09-09 10:43:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 23
Words: 167,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8887834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Seeingredfics/pseuds/Seeingredfics
Summary: Parker Rhee and her twin brother Glenn never imagined finding anything as good as their home back in Michigan after the end of the world. But now, after finally escaping the dangerous streets of Atlanta, they manage to create a family with an ex county sheriff, his wife and son, a redneck with a crossbow, a grieving sister, an elderly man with an RV, a mother and daughter finally away from their abusive home, and a somewhat deranged police officer who isn't at all who he seems to be.





	1. Into The Woods

_I guess I’m losing hope that you can hear me. But there’s always that chance, isn’t there? That slim chance. It’s all about slim chances now. I try to do everything right. Keep people safe. I tried, Morgan. I tried. Our group’s smaller now. We lost another, day before last. It was her choice; I won’t say I blame her, she lost faith. The CDC’s a dead end. I met a man there, a scientist. He told me something, he told me...It doesn’t matter. What matters is, we’re moving on. Atlanta’s done, we’re gonna try for Fort Benning. We’re facing a long, hard journey. Maybe even harder than I can imagine, but it can’t be harder than our journey’s been so far, can it? One hundred and twenty-five miles. That’s what lies ahead. And I’m trying hard not to lose faith. I can’t; if I do the others, my family...my wife...my son. There’s just a few of us now, so we gotta stick together. Fight for each other. Be willing to lay down our lives for each other if it comes to that. It’s the only chance we’ve got. Be careful out there, Morgan. I hope you and Dwayne are okay. Stay off the road, keep moving, keep your eyes open. I don’t know, just...just be safe. Maybe we’ll see you in Fort Benning someday. Rick, signing off._

* * *

It felt like they had been driving for weeks. Trees were just green and brown blurs in the corner of her eyes and the road was endless, just like it had been since they left Atlanta. Parker leaned her head back onto the pillow of the RV’s pull out bed and turned to face the inside of the bus, no longer wanting to see the deserted world fly past her. She looked in front of her to the small, cream sofa on the other side of the RV where T-Dog was sleeping. After what happened at the CDC, after losing Jackie, he had been quiet, reserved. Parker didn’t blame him, she had been quiet too. With Dale driving and her brother Glenn sat at his side, reading a book he had probably read about 10 times by now, that only left Andrea and Shane for company. They were both sat at the table in the middle of the RV, talking about guns and whatever else Parker was too bored to listen to.

Since the CDC, since losing the last bit of hope she had left of finding a cure for whatever had destroyed the world, she had been miserable. Usually, Parker and Glenn were the group's way of keeping themselves entertained, telling stories of their childhood and the antics the twins used to get up to back in Michigan, even going so far as to share the time in middle school when Glenn vomited on a girl shoes because he was so scared of asking her out. That one had even made Daryl snort with amusement, and he usually never batted an eyelid.

Parker didn’t understand Daryl Dixon. He was out here, in the middle of nowhere like the rest of them, but with no family by his side and no real reason to stay with the Atlanta group. Not anymore. Rick had Lori and Carl, his entire family, and Carol had Sophia, the only family she wanted. T-Dog, Andrea and Shane were still alone in the world, but they had each other's backs, as did Dale when he was discussing car mechanics with Glenn or reading in silence with Parker. And of course, the twins had each other, so they chose to stay. Daryl however, he was different. He really had no reason to be here, not after his brother ran off with one of their trucks, he just stayed with the group for the numbers; for the safety. At least, that was the only reason she could think of for his constant presence.

Parker rolled back over towards the window and sat up, stretching her arms slightly, before looking out onto the road again, noticing the small metal barriers that cut off the forest from the tarmac and realised they were nearing the highway. She heard the far off rumble of Daryl’s motorbike and craned her neck to get a look at him, hoping to see anything beyond the bike that might give the group some indication on how much longer they would need to drive.

The moment she caught a glimpse of the familiar black leather jacket, white angel wings stitched carefully onto the back, she smiled. She had been meaning to ask him where he had gotten it from, never seeing a jacket like it before, and why the angel wings? Glenn had told her that biker’s wore them on their jackets to symbolise them surviving a motorcycle accident, as if to say God himself protected them and brought them back. Knowing Glenn, he probably made it up just so she didn’t go over and talk to Daryl, not wanting his sister to get the same cold glare he received on a daily basis. Glenn wasn’t entirely sure if it was because he was Korean - his redneck brother had been a well known racist back at the Quarry and that trait might have rubbed off on him - or because Daryl wasn’t able to convey any other emotion other than anger.

“Ah, geez.” Parker looked up at the sound of Dale’s exasperated voice, and carefully sat up in the bed, not wanting to push her tired muscles too much. She hadn’t been able to sleep properly in days, only seeing the CDC explode every time she closed her eyes, and Glenn had put her on almost permanent bed rest the moment they escaped the city. Parker draped her legs over the side of the bed and leaned forward to get a better look out of the windshield. That’s when she noticed the pile up.

“Oh no.” Glenn sighed as hundreds of cars drew closer and closer, all abandoned, and all in their way. Behind him, his sister stood up and made her way to the front of the RV so she was leaning against the passenger seat, staring at the mess in front of them. They both wore similar, pained expressions, making them look even more identical. Glenn sighed and looked down just as Daryl pulled up to Dale’s window, revving the engine to get his attention.

“See a way through?” Dale called down from the window. Parker couldn’t see past Dale’s head, but after a pause he nodded at Daryl and she heard the engine roar to life as he started to make his way past the RV and then back again, having circled round and rushing off into the cluster of cars, trucks and minivans, disappearing from view altogether after a few seconds. Dale kicked the RV back to life and he slowly weaved his way through the cars, narrowly avoiding an upturned truck right in front of them. Glenn was holding a map and shaking his head.  
“Uh, maybe we should just go back.” He suggested, and Parker bent down to get a closer look at the roads drawn on the paper, seeing them wind endlessly around each other, looping back to Atlanta, or just heading off further South.

She had never been good at reading maps, or giving directions, which was the reason Glenn had been the navigator back when they made runs together in the city. She was the muscle, funnily enough, having taken self defence classes and becoming a gym freak throughout College. Glenn still hadn’t lived down the time she managed to save his whiny ass after he ran into three walkers, knocked them over, screamed manically, and proceeded to thrash around instead of hitting them with the club his sister had found him. The moment she bludgeoned the walkers to death, Glenn was red in the face and begging her not to tell anyone how he almost cried like a little girl, but Parker was still laughing when they made dinner that night, and news travelled fast in their group.

“There’s an interstate bypass-” Glenn offered, but Dale was already cutting him off.

“Can’t spare the fuel.” He said, Shane nodding behind him in agreement. Parker held onto Glenn’s seat as Dale drove the RV, whilst leading the car behind carrying the other two families, through the wreckage of traffic. Everyone was silent as they saw the overturned cars, the bodies that lay lifeless on the ground and the quiet, unnerving atmosphere that seemed to spread across the highway. It was like a graveyard, Parker thought, seeing a family lying dead in their car as they passed. Her stomach churned, but she kept a straight face, not wanting to show her brother any sign of fear. He’d just baby her more, and she needed to do something other than rest.

“Can we get through here?” Glenn asked no one in particular as the pathway between the cars started to grow narrower, only to jump in his seat as a loud bang erupted from in front of him. Steam exploded through the vent in the front of the RV and Dale groaned as it started to hiss and spit, signalling that it couldn’t go any further. Parker stood up straight as he pulled the RV to a stop and turned it off, dropping his hands from the wheel. It had been stupid to rely on the old thing to keep going this long, especially since they needed as much shelter as they could out in the open, completely exposed.

Everyone piled out of the RV, Parker following a fuming Dale and Shane, who was carrying his shotgun over his shoulder, trudged out behind her. “I said it, didn’t I say it? A thousand times. Dead in the water.” Dale threw his arms up at the sight of his RV smoking and all Parker could do was shake her head and walk over to an abandoned car, lean against the hood, and watch the rest of her group file out of the car and huddle together.

“Problem, Dale?” Shane asked, walking over to him.

“Well, there’s the small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere, with no hope of-” Dale then looked around him and Parker did the same. Even though they were stuck, these cars were filled to the brim with supplies. Maybe everything hadn’t gone to shit just yet. “Okay, that was dumb.” She smiled slightly before dragging her feet across the road and joining Daryl, who was rummaging through an open boot. She noticed a large blue and white checked shirt and snatched it up, admiring its almost pristine condition, before looking over her shoulder at her brother. He merely shrugged, realising that this was probably the only chance the group would get at finding clean clothes, and nodded at her. Parker then turned around and pulled the shirt over her battered up Thrasher shirt, an old one of her father’s that had always been way too big for her, rolling the sleeves up just above her wrists and feeling the most relaxed she had in days, enjoying the feeling of the soft fabric against her dirty skin.

She felt eyes on her however, and slowly glanced up to see Daryl watching her. He didn’t seem impressed, or annoyed, but she frowned at him anyway. “I don’t think it counts as stealing anymore, not really.” She said. He didn’t say anything, just huffed, before turning away. Parker pursed her lips but did the same, facing the group and leaning against the car.

“Well, if we can’t find a radiator hose here.” Shane said, surveying the vehicles around him that might do the job.

Daryl, who was still sifting through random cars, finally spoke up. “There’s a whole bunch of stuff we could find.” He muttered, dragging out a bag and opening it up to search through it.

“Siphon more fuel from these cars for a start.” T-Dog joined in, making his way to a nearby people carrier. Parker walked up to her brother, placing a hand on his arm. He seemed tense, but once he saw her at his side he softened and smiled.

“We can get some new clothes.” She said.

“Maybe some water?” Carol perked up.

“Food.” Glenn said with a grin. Then Lori spoke up behind them all.

“This place is a graveyard.” She said grimly and everyone paused. “I don’t know how I feel about this.” Parker turned to her.

“It’s the best we’ve had in days. I’m not letting it go to waste.” She said, before wandering off into the sea of cars, not looking back. Glenn sighed but followed his sister, not wanting her to go too far from his view. He noticed Daryl glance at the two of them and Glenn hesitantly smiled at him politely, only to receive a glare in return. He hurried off after Parker, feeling a chill go down his spine. The twins weaved through the cars, looking into the windows to see if they could find anything useful, before Parker finally stopped outside of a large 4 seater, thankfully seeing no bodies inside, and opened the door. She spotted a suitcase in the driver's seat and reached over to grab it, dragging it out onto the road and opening it up only to grin for the first time in days. It was filled with clothes, both men and women's, and even had some protein bars and juice boxes. She spotted some toiletries in the netted pocket of the case and realised that this ‘graveyard’ was more like a goldmine.

“Hey Glenn!” She called over and her brother jogged to her side instantly, staring at the case in shock.

“Is that stuff even real?” He asked, bending down and picking up some deodorant and a baseball cap that was on top of the clothes pile. He almost couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “What else is in there?” He asked, pointing to the car, and Parker closed up the case before placing it to the side of the car, and wandered over to the boot whilst Glenn checked the glove compartment.

“There’s another case in here.” Parker called out, pushing the boot door above her head and pulling the black and purple suitcase from underneath a sleeping bag that had been haphazardly thrown into the back of the car. She checked inside, seeing it was once again completely full, before zipping it up, rolling the sleeping bag under her arm, and reaching over to get the other case.

Glenn almost laughed at how much she was carrying, her tiny frame looking even smaller under the weight of the cases, but felt relief at the realisation that this stuff could last them weeks, maybe longer, if they grabbed enough from these cars. “I’m gonna put this stuff in the RV.” Parker said, her brother nodded, and headed back to the parked cars. Dale was staring into the RV’s broken vent and desperately trying to take out the screws with a screwdriver as Andrea paced around him. Shane, Rick, Carol, Sophia and Carl had all gone to search themselves, Parker even noticed Lori holding a jumper up to her chest and she smirked.

“Whatcha got there kiddo?” T-Dog asked, staring with wide eyes at the amount of stuff she had brought back already. Parker held back from rolling her eyes at the nickname. Her and Glenn were the youngest in the group of adults, only just turning 23 a few months back, and T-Dog never missed an opportunity to not only bring up their age, but their height, Glenn only being about 5”9 whilst Parker stood at 5”7, making them also some of the shortest in their group, apart from Sophia and Carl who barely made it up past Rick‘s waist.

“Hit the jackpot.” She beamed, climbing into the RV. “Seriously, look around, who knows what’s left out here.” Parker dragged the cases and sleeping bag all the way into the small, makeshift bedroom of the RV and placed it all on top of the duvet, piling it to the side to make room in case she managed to find anything else. Once she was back outside in the heat, she saw her brother with Dale, holding some tools the older man occasionally took to try and fix whatever had burst earlier on. Parker looked around, wondering which way to go next, before seeing Daryl further up the highway climbing into the back of a mini van. She bit her lip, looked over her shoulder at her brother to make sure he wasn’t paying attention, before heading in the direction of the van. She passed Carl and Sophia who were both inside a car searching through glove compartments and under the seats and she couldn’t help but smile at their eagerness to help the adults.

When she first met the two of them, Sophia had barely said a word her way. Carl on the other hand was happy to chat with Parker, seeing as they both shared a love for the outdoors and, strangely enough, fighting, one of Carl’s favourite subjects to talk about. He asked her how she knew so many fighting moves and techniques and the moment she told him of her time in judo and self defence class back in College, he wanted to learn too. Lori had been extremely tough on him, however. She refused to let him anywhere near the weapons the men had in camp and she especially didn’t want her boy to know how to fight. Parker disagreed on some level, seeing as the world wasn’t how it used to be.

“He should know how to protect himself.” She said one evening at dinner, sitting beside her sleeping brother and Andrea as they wolfed down the rabbit Daryl had caught that morning. “It’s helped me out over the years, it could help him too. It’s never too early to start.” Lori grimaced.

“My son doesn’t need to know how to fight.” She said firmly, stroking his hair. “He needs to know how to keep quiet and stay with the group.” Carl went red, knowing he had a tendency to wander off from camp and out of his mother’s view, which never went down well. Parker shrugged. No one could get through to Lori, not even Shane or Rick. So she dropped it. Carl wasn’t her kid, she had no right to interfere.

Parker stopped once she was less than a stone's throw away from Daryl, who was searching through the back of the van, crossbow around his shoulders. “Need any help?” She asked, putting her hands on her hips. For a few seconds, Daryl didn’t reply, he just kept his back to her. She crossed her arms. “Daryl-”

“M’fine.” He said, his voice muffled by the junk that surrounded him. That’s when Parker noticed the contents of the van. Band gear, musical instruments, boom boxes. It must have been a tour van, a very small one. She let her eyes gloss over the equipment before settling on an acoustic guitar. She stepped forward to grab it and admired the shiny wooden body, taking a small purple pic from the neck of the guitar and strumming on of the strings lightly. Daryl suddenly stepped out from the shadows of the van. “You play or somethin’?” He asked with a grunt. Parker glanced up at him, realising this was the first time he had ever actually asked her a question, and nodded her head.

“Glenn too.” She said, moving over to the edge of the van where she perched herself, lifting one of her jean clad legs up to rest the guitar on her knee. She strummed again, harder this time, and winced at the sound of the untuned strings clash together. “I played everyday, before all of this. Thought about running off with a band once when I was a teenager.” Silence. She turned her head to see Daryl looking at her through narrow eyes. She blinked. “I was rebellious when I was 17.” He scoffed at her. Parker turned her body to face him as he dropped down out of the van and kicked open the door of the car behind it. He was closer to her now and she could hear him mumbling something under his breath. “You don’t like talking, do you.” She said, leaning on the guitar. Daryl didn’t stop riffling through the car. “You can speak to me you know.” She continued. “You don’t have to be so quiet all the time.”

“Ain’t nothin’ to talk about.” She almost didn’t hear him over the sound of him throwing empty bottles of water over his shoulder.

“Isn’t there?” She snorted. Daryl sighed in annoyance and straightened up, looking over at her. The pair stared at each other for a while before he shook his head. He walked around to the boot of the car and yanked it open, then leaned down to dig his way through the pile of clothes and shoes littering the back of the car.

“Ain’t got nothin’ in common.” He said. Parker frowned.

“How would you know?” She asked, putting the guitar down and standing up again, making her way over to his right side and crossing her arms. “You haven’t bothered to get to know to me.” Daryl instantly stood up, causing Parker to step back in shock. He looked angry, or at the very least pissed off for her still being here. But she held her ground.

“You hunt?” He grunted. Parker blinked at him.

“What?”

“Do you hunt?” He asked again, slowly his voice down so she could understand it better. To be honest, it just made him sound condescending.

“No.” She replied with a frown. “I don’t.”

“Do you know how to track?” He asked. Parker could only shake her head. He looked her up and down and snorted. “Then we have nothin’ in common.” She stared at him for a moment before shaking her head and scoffing.

“So you won’t get to know me, because I’m not like you?” She asked. Daryl’s eye twitched.

“Seriously? We’re in this together.” Parker said sternly, moving closer to him. “All of us. Who cares if we don’t have similar interests or even similar morals? That doesn’t mean we can’t know who we’re travelling with.”

“Just leave me be, alright?” Daryl spat suddenly, getting in her face. Parker didn’t step back this time, she stood her ground and kept eye contact. Daryl sneered. “Go back to yer brother.” He said, his voice low and gravely. “Annoy him for a change.” Parker watched as Daryl stalked off, hitching his crossbow up higher onto his back, and kick a door shut loudly for good measure. She glared at his back.

“Asshole.” She muttered. She was about to turn back to the RV, start heading over and seeing if there was anything in the cars parked back near the group, when she heard the sound of Shane laughing not too far away. Parker walked over, curiosity taking its toll, only to see Shane grinning at her brother, who was trying to take apart the inside of one of the cars, as the two stared at the van he had found...filled with tanks of water. Parker could have wept tears of joy. Shane eagerly ripped open one of the tanks, letting the water flow out all over him, letting it rush over his body and occasionally opening his mouth to savour as much as he could. Glenn was jumping and yelling at the others, who were all laughing and smiling.

Parker leaned against a car and shook her head, biting her lip at the sight of her brother. It was good to see him happy, even for a moment. He looked like the old Glenn from before it all started. The one who always had a smile and a joke ready to brighten her day, or annoy her depending on her mood. She wished she hadn’t taken that part of her brother for granted, because nowadays she only saw the quiet, sad side of him.

Parker heard a loud scoff behind her and looked over her shoulder at Daryl sitting a few cars down from her. He had one leg propped up on the edge of a boot and had a suitcase open in front of him, but he was shaking his head at Shane, still drenching himself with water. Parker rolled her eyes at him and for a second she thought he looked at her out of the corner of his eye. He was always so negative, she thought, why couldn’t he just enjoy this moment with the rest of them? Like a normal human being.

Parker was just about to rush over to the water truck, wanting to fill up her dry water bottle, but was stopped mid step by a gurgling sound not too far away from her. She slowly turned her head to see a man limping towards her, jaw hanging from his face and blood splattered across his chest, eyes milky white and bulging from their sockets. His right foot was broken and turned inwards, so he was walking on his ankle and he had both of his arms spread out in front of him, reaching for her.

She wanted to yell, her instincts told her too, but then she glanced to her right only to see several more coming her way. She let out a shaky breath before slowly inching her way backwards, her hand blindly grabbing at one of the cars, hoping to open the door and give her some cover. She eventually found a people carrier and quickly ducked behind it, pressing her back to the tire and gripping the hunting knife in its holster attached to her thigh.

A bottle suddenly rolled across the tarmac and she turned to see Daryl crouched opposite her, holding his finger to his mouth and signalling her to be quiet. She nodded before licking her lips nervously and watching him take a silent step forward, his crossbow raised to his eye before firing a shot. He caught the walker right between the eyes, and it fell in a heap of blood and guts by Parker’s hand. She quickly snatched her hand away but then grabbed the walker’s head, pulled it back, and drew the arrow slowly but firmly from its skull.

Daryl nodded once at her and started to take off in the direction of the walkers, hoping to take more of them down before they reached the others, but just as he passed her Parker looked up and nearly screamed. She grabbed Daryl by the shirt and pulled him down beside her.

“The hell-” She pressed her hand over his mouth, much to his surprise and pointed over his shoulder. Daryl swivelled round to see a group of nearly 50 walkers coming their way and his eyes widened. He took Parker’s hand from his face and gripped her wrist, dragging her away from the people carrier and back towards the group as quickly and as quietly as he could. Parker panicked at first, not being able to see anyone from their group anymore, before she heard someone whisper her name. She looked down to see Rick under one of the cars and she got on her all fours only to see Lori and Carol a few cars down, holding each other. She turned to the other side of the road, and Parker felt a chill run down her spine at the sight of Carl and Sophia under two separate cars near the metal barrier on the edge of the highway, nowhere near the others.

“Park.” Daryl whispered and she whipped her head round. She was ready to question him about the sudden nickname, one that only Glenn used for her, before she remembered where they were. Daryl gestured at the car next to Rick and she got the message, falling to her stomach and sliding underneath, holding her breath and taking out her knife, stuffing Daryl’s bloody arrow into one of her belt loops to keep it secure at her hip. Daryl made sure she and Rick were out of sight before shifting to a crouch and heading back the way he came. Parker looked around the cars, desperately searching for her brother, before craning her neck round to see him a few feet behind her to the left, back to back with Shane under the water truck, and she let out a breath. At least Glenn was okay.

All they could do was wait for the herd to pass, and Rick kept putting his finger to his lips to remind Carl and Sophia to stay quiet. Parker watched the kids, as did Carol and Lori, with baited breath as the herd started to pass them. She saw broken feet and wrecked shoes, ripped jeans and dirty socks for at least 5 minutes before the numbers started dwindling. She kept her lips tightly pressed together, not wanting to risk making any sort of noise, and waited until there was only one walker left. It dragged itself slowly by her car and she felt her heart stop as it paused right by her head. Her grip tightened on her hunting knife as the walker turned around a few times, as if looking for something. Parker prayed that it couldn't smell any of them. She’d be screwed then. Rick looked her dead in the eye from underneath his own car and gave her a reassuring smile, and relief flooded her body as the walker slowly dragged itself away and towards the rest of the herd.

After a few more minutes of silent waiting, Parker lifted her head and looked underneath the cars ahead of her, and sighed in relief as the area was completely deserted. The herd had moved on. She snuck a glance at Rick who was also looking to see if the coast was clear. He nodded once and she started to crawl out from underneath the car, Rick right behind her. Carol and Lori began to shift as well and Parker went over to the kids, only to stumble in shock at the sight of a walker ducking down between the truck and two seater convertible that Carl and Sophia were under. She held her knife close and rushed over ready to attack, only to see that the walker had already crawled under the car after a screaming Sophia.

“Carl, stay there!” Parker ordered, as the young boy scrambled from his hiding spot, wanting to run after his friend. Sophia had crawled underneath the highway barrier and was hurrying off down the small, grassy bank that led into the forest. Parker stared in disbelief as the walker, and she held her breath as she spotted another already in the woods making its way after the little girl, chased after Sophia with its arms stretched out and jaw open, growling at her. Rick pushed past her, jumping over the barrier and sprinting into the woods. Carol was crying and calling Sophia’s name frantically somewhere behind her. Parker thought fast and sheathed her knife, catching Carol mid run so she didn’t blindly hurl herself after Rick. “We can’t all go out there, it’s not safe.” Parker said but that just made Carol cry even harder.

“But-but my baby, she’s out there!” Carol sobbed, holding onto Parker’s new checkered shirt with all her strength, shaking in the younger girl's arms, and staining it with tears. Parker rubbed her thumb over Carol’s shoulder as comfortingly as she could but nodded.

“I know.” She breathed, but she took Carol’s hands away and forced her to look into her eyes. “But Rick will bring her back. You hear me? He won’t let her get hurt.” Lori jogged over, grabbing onto Carl and hugging him tight to her chest. She looked up to Parker, giving her a grateful look for comforting Carol. It didn’t take long for the others to hurry over. Dale clambered down from where he had been hiding on top of the RV just as Andrea stumbled out of its open doorway, covered in blood. Parker’s eyes widened but Andrea shook her head. It wasn’t her blood. Shane and Glenn ran over, Glenn rushing to his sister and pulling her away from Carol, who went back to Lori for comfort, and scanned over her tiny frame with his eyes, turning her body with his hands to make sure she was okay.

“Glenn, Glenn!” Parker protested, but her brother didn’t listen.

“Are your hurt?” He asked. “Any bites, scratches, bruises, cuts-” He fired words at her and Parker had to grip his face to stop him.

“Glenn, I’m fine.” She offered him a small smile. “I’m okay. Are you?” He paused, trying to get his breath back but nodded.

“Yeah, yeah I’m good.” The two embraced, laughing slightly at how frantic they had been. Parker eventually pulled away as she spotted Daryl and T-Dog walking towards them over her brother’s shoulder, then froze at the sight of T-Dog’s blood soaked arm.

“Jesus christ, T!” She exclaimed and ran over to him. Daryl was holding him for support, T-Dog’s left arm over his shoulder, but was staring grimly at his right arm. A huge gash from the top of his wrist up to his elbow was pushing out blood at an alarming rate and Parker had to muster up a lot of courage not to turn away and vomit. Glenn was by her side in seconds and helped Daryl bring T-Dog into the RV.

“What the hell happened?” Glenn asked, grabbing some towels and dabbing at the wound, making T-Dog cry out and squeeze his eyes shut. Parker was trying to use some paper towels to wipe away the blood and turned to stare at Daryl who was in the RV doorway. He looked just how he always did, annoyed.

“Slipped near a car door.” T-Dog managed to get out after a few seconds of deep breathing and wincing. “The car was...broken...must have been a bit of...m-metal or somethin’. Cut it...right down the...middle. Ah!” Glenn put pressure on the wound but flinched as his friend cried out. “Hurts like a son of a bitch!”

“We have to get the blood to stop.” Parker said to her brother just as Dale pushed past Daryl and stared in disbelief at T-Dog. He went into the bathroom and grabbed some alcohol and a clean dishcloth, he then told the twins to leave. “Dale we can help you.” Parker retorted but he gave her a stern look and she bit her tongue, not wanting to argue with him. She ushered both Glenn and Daryl out of the RV and slammed the door just as T-Dog’s cries got louder. The others all stared at them wide eyed, wanting to know what was going on. Parker just let Glenn explain it all, wandering off back into the pile of cars for some fresh air and a chance to breath.

She soon found herself sitting in a small, silver Toyota, gripping the steering wheel and staring out of the windscreen in a daze. She missed being able to drive down the main roads back in Michigan; having that feeling of complete freedom. She could go anywhere at any time and for however long she wanted, even just for the night. But now, she couldn’t go anywhere without someone by her side as back up. She had no time to herself. She refused to bail on this group though, especially Glenn. She would never abandon her brother, no matter what happened. He was the only family she had left, as far as she knew, and she wasn’t going to be alone in this type of world. Not like Daryl and Andrea, who both lost their siblings in the same week.

She jumped in fright as something slowly shuffled past the car, and she almost forgot that the Toyota had lost the driver’s seat door, leaving her exposed to the highway. She grabbed her knife and on instinct, held it up to the throat of whoever was next to her. Daryl instantly held his hands up in mock surrender and Parker felt her breathing start to steady. She paused before letting her hand fall into her lap.

“Chill out girl.” Daryl grunted. “S’just me.”

“Yeah well, a little warning might have been nice.” She spat and Daryl almost looked startled at her tone. "I thought you were a walker." He raised an eyebrow at her and reached up to shrug the crossbow higher onto his shoulder. Parker glanced at him and gulped, running a hand through her messy, black hair. Since she left Atlanta, her hair had been limp and lifeless across her shoulders and she knew it needed washing. She felt disgusting as well as pissed off. She closed her eyes and gripped the wheel again, letting out a long awaited breath. “I’m sorry. Just a bit jumpy, and scared.”

“Why?” Daryl asked with a gruff voice. He was a smoker, Parker knew that from living with him back at the camp, and his voice just seemed to get lower when he was talking quietly. When he was yelling though, his voice became strained and higher pitched; panicked. She hated hearing him like that.

“Sophia’s out there.” She said, staring off into the forest. “I just hope Rick finds her quickly so we can grab what we need and leave this place.” Daryl didn’t say anything, just looked around the graveyard of cars and bodies. His mouth twitched and looked down at the girl in the car. He hadn’t taken much notice of Glenn or his sister since he joined the Atlanta group with his older brother. But he was long gone now, and Daryl began to feel the urge to get closer to the group. He felt like he needed to talk to them, otherwise he’d go insane. Now Merle wasn’t with him, and possibly out in Atlanta on his own with only one hand to defend himself, he felt abandoned like a stray dog.

He hated his brother’s company before, but without it he felt isolated. The group didn’t particularly like him, at least he assumed they did by his attitude towards them and his tendency to be hot headed, but for some reason Parker Rhee was insistent on trying to talk to him, to make him feel included. And he didn’t know how to feel about it. She had tried to listen to his ideas and opinions throughout their time together, agreeing with him on more than one occasion to both Daryl and Glenn’s surprise. Why bother?That’s what Daryl had wanted to ask her for weeks now. Why bother with someone like him? He didn’t care about her, why should she care about him?

“You got somethin’ of mine.” He drawled, awkwardly shuffling his feet, hating the silence and just wanting to walk off and shoot something. Parker frowned, still not looking at him, before staring down at her belt. His arrow was pressed into her hip, leaving a dent, and she pulled it out quickly. She then got out of the car and stood right in front of Daryl, almost toe to toe. He blinked at her. She didn’t seem uncomfortable standing so close to him, yet he felt the urge to step back, but he didn’t. Parker handed him the arrow without another word and Daryl hesitantly took it, taking a second to look between her and the arrow, as if he didn’t know what to do next.

He then cleared his throat before stalking off back towards the group, just in time to see Rick come back, but without Sophia. Parker watched Daryl go, and she watched the group’s mood go from bad to worse as Rick talked to them in a hushed voice. Carol’s wails could be heard across the highway. Parker looked out into the forest and felt her bad mood start to return. Not only had T-Dog wrecked his arm, but now they’d lost one of the kids, as if this day couldn’t get any worse.


	2. Hide and Seek

“She’s so scared of being alone, I-I don’t know how she’d get through this forest without someone to help her, I mean, she’s only 12...how is she supposed to keep herself safe in a place like this?” Carol had been rambling to herself for the past 15 minutes and Parker was no longer sure whether she wanted to go over and comfort her or tell her to be quiet. She felt evil for thinking that, knowing that Carol had just lost her only child, but she was tired and scared and hungry and just wanted to go back to the RV and fall asleep knowing that everyone was safe and sound and not lost out here in the middle of nowhere. After Daryl and Rick weren’t able to find her the day before, although Daryl found some sort of tracks leading off deeper into the woods, the group decided that going after her in the dark was no use. They’d get lost themselves.  
  
That had only set Carol off even more and now they were all hauling ass into the forest a little after dawn, leaving Dale and T-Dog behind to guard the RV and their belongings, as well as keeping watch for anymore walkers or by some miracle, Sophia herself. Parker had been near the back of the group, following behind Lori and Carl with Glenn at her side, who was looking around the woods every few seconds, listening for any sort of movement. Andrea was behind them, looking at the ground with a sour expression, as if wanting it to swallow her up where she stood. Ahead of them, Rick and Shane were leading Carol through the woods and wherever Daryl pointed, as he was the one leading the group.  
  
“Do you think we’re actually going to find her? This place is huge, it’ll take hours, maybe even days to search it all.” Glenn whispered, glancing to his right and seeing a rabbit hopping out of the bush. Parker was about to respond when an arrow whizzed past them and struck the rabbit right in the forehead. The twins stared in shock as Daryl marched over, grabbing the rabbit by the ears and yanking the arrow from its skull. He tied the rabbit to a piece of rope he hung over his shoulder whenever he went hunting, and then turned to them, tiny droplets of blood splattering his already dirt covered vest. He was angry, even angrier than usual, and his eyes were glaring down at them both as if they had just insulted him.  
  
“Keep up.” He grunted. “And shut up.” He then walked back to the front of the group, taking the lead once again. Rick raised an eyebrow at the twins and they both looked away, ashamed. Glenn hadn’t meant for Daryl to hear, but apparently the man had ears like a hawk. He was just worried that they were going to be wandering the woods, desperately searching for this girl, only to find either nothing, or something none of them wanted to see. Andrea brushed past them both and Glenn went after her. Parker sighed, staring up at the sky, before walking right past Andrea and Glenn, much to his confusion, then past Lori, Carl and Carol, who was still rambling.  
  
She managed to get ahead of Rick and Shane, who took no notice of her, until she was just by Daryl’s left side. She treaded carefully, making sure not to break any sticks or step on too many leaves. She wasn’t sure if she was actually trying to be quiet or trying to show Daryl that she wasn’t a complete waste of space. He barely acknowledged her presence, turning his head ever so slightly just to get a glimpse of her over his broad shoulder. He huffed and turned back again, bow raised to his chest. Parker bit the inside of her cheek, but rested a hand on her knife; she had moved the holster up to her hip that morning so it was easier to reach if things got ugly. So far, nothing had happened, other than Daryl getting rabbit for dinner.  
  
“What do you see?” Parker asked after a few minutes of silence, walking closer to Daryl so she wasn’t making too much of a racket. Daryl didn’t respond, just kept his eyes glued to the floor, looking up to see where he was going every so often. Parker cleared her throat. “Is it Sophia’s tracks?” She asked, noticing the odd arrangement of leaves on the ground, and even though she wasn’t a tracker, it was obvious that someone had moved through this area. “It’s all upturned here, that means someone was running, right?”  
  
“Would ya quit botherin’ me!” Daryl snapped suddenly, keeping his voice low and gravely. Parker blinked.  
  
“I’m trying to help.” She responded, her voice just as snippy and agitated. “You can’t be the only one who knows how to look for her. So let me lend a hand.” Daryl glared at the forest ahead of him.  
  
“I don’t need no help. I can find her on my own just fine.” He said, his steps getting quicker and further apart in order to let her fall behind him. Parker wasn’t giving up though, and paced herself until she was striding beside him. She didn’t want to turn around to see if Shane or Rick were watching, she could already tell they were staring at the two ahead of them in confusion.  
  
“Daryl, just listen to me.” Parker went to grab his arm but he was already throwing his hand up to silence her. At first she wanted to protest, but then saw what he was staring at. In the thicket up ahead sat a single camping tent. Empty cans and bottles were surrounding it and the tent itself looked like it had sunk in on itself due to rain. Parker then saw the blood. Rick was at Daryl’s other side in seconds, Shane appearing behind him and peering over their shoulders at the tent.  
  
“Sophia could be in there.” He said quietly, hearing the others stop behind him.  
  
Daryl shook his head. “Could be a whole bunch of things in there.” He motioned for everyone to get down to the ground, and once every person in the group was crouched down, he crept towards the tent, Rick not far behind him. The two men checked the outside of the tent, making sure there were no traps or people hiding in the bushes around them. Daryl then slowly tip toed up to the tent door, unzipping it, and then holding the crossbow to his face, ready to fire, just incase. Rick then motioned for Carol, calling her name softly. Carol hesitantly got up and went over to them. She stumbled however, and Parker grabbed her before she collapsed. Carol went pink.  
  
“I’m sorry, I-I just-”  
  
“Come on.” Parker said with a soft smile, leading the trembling woman over to the tent. Rick nodded at the two of them, and they nodded back, letting him know they were alright.  
  
“Carol, call out softly.” Rick instructed quietly, pointing to the tent. Carol frowned but Rick rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. “If she’s in there, yours is the first voice she should hear.” Carol glanced up to Parker who nodded in encouragement. Carol gulped down her nerves and walked a little closer to the tent, Daryl getting ready to open it as soon as she did so.  
  
“Sophia? Sweetie, are you in there?” She called out, her voice wavering, but soft and welcoming. If it had been Parker out here, lost in the woods waiting for the others to find her, she would have come running at the sound of Carol’s voice. “Sophia, it’s mommy.” Carol continued, taking a step forward. Parker made sure to keep close to her, knife in hand, whilst Rick did the same a little ways behind them, gun in hand and the safety already clicked off.  
  
“Sophia. We’re all here baby. It’s mommy.” After nothing happened, Daryl looked to Rick before grabbing the tent door and flinging it open, heading inside. There was a long silence after he disappeared before they all heard Daryl coughing and even gag for a moment. Carol whimpered and Parker instinctively wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders. Rick rushed forward.  
  
“Daryl?” He called. No answer. The group behind them started to get impatient and stood up, not knowing whether to go over or keep their distance.  
  
“Daryl?” Parker called out this time, worry etched into her voice. Suddenly the tent flapped open and everyone held their breath as Daryl stepped out, head raised and a grim look on his face.  
“It ain’t her.” He said gruffly, walking back to Parker and Carol.  
  
“What’s in there?” Parker asked, glancing back at the tent as she led Carol back to Lori, who was already reaching her arms out to comfort her. It was better if the mothers stay together, Parker thought to herself as she let Carol go, she had no idea what Carol would be going through, seeing as she didn’t have children, or wanted any for that matter. Parker had never gotten on with kids, thinking they were annoying and smelly and hated that they always asked too many questions. Even when she was younger she wanted to hang out with all of the older kids in her neighborhood. Glenn just wanted to hang out with her, like the baby brother he was. Baby brother by three and a half minutes, he always reminded her, but she planned to keep those precious three and a half minutes over his head for the rest of their lives.  
  
“Some guy.” Daryl replied, looking at her through his blonde eyelashes. “Did what Jenner said. Opted out. Ain’t that what he called it?” Parker nodded and turned her back, walking to the group. Glenn rubbed her arm, offering her a small smile and she managed to return it. She just wanted to find this kid and leave, the woods was freaking her out she didn’t want to find anymore dead bodies, walking around or not. That’s when they heard the church bells. Everyone froze before blindly scanning the forest.  
  
“What direction?” Shane asked Rick who was dumbstruck for a second before pointing East towards a small clearing.  
  
“I think that way.” He said. “I’m pretty sure.”  
  
“Damn, it’s hard to tell out here.” Shane gritted his teeth. The group started walking towards the clearing, picking up the pace as the bells kept ringing and ringing.  
  
“If we heard them, maybe Sophia did too.” Carol said to Parker and Lori.  
  
“Someone’s ringing those bells, maybe calling others.” Glenn said, clearly worried about everyone just heading off deeper into the woods without much thought.  
  
“Or signalling they found her.” Andrea offered.  
  
“She could be ringing them herself.” Rick said and started sprinting through the field as he saw the church and the gravestones. Everyone else picked up the pace and were hot in his heels in seconds, Parker right behind him and Daryl beside her. Glenn was panting but he managed to stay close to his sister and looked over at the church, frowning that there was no steeple for the bell. But it was there, it was ringing.  
  
“This can’t be it.” Shane panted as they reached the church door. “Got no steeple, no bells.” He said, reading Glenn’s train of thought. Rick burst through the door, gun raised, with Daryl and Shane behind him with their weapons arms and ready. They paused as three walkers, all sat on the benches inside the church, turned to stare at them. The men hurried in quietly, Daryl taking the closest walker on the right, a woman with greying hair and a funeral veil over her eyes that had gotten so mouldy it was stuck to the skin on her face. He made kissing noises at her to get her attention before swinging one of the hatchet’s that Carl managed to find back at the highway, much to Lori’s disappointment, and swung it at the walker's head. He didn’t expect her skull to shatter and smash as much as it did, and he stumbled back at the sight of its caved in head falling towards him.  
  
Shane and Rick quickly, and more brutally, took out the two male walkers in the centre sections of the isles. Once the men made sure the walkers were all dead, the others ushered themselves in. Rick stood in the middle of the church looking desperate. “Sophia!” He cried out, making Parker jump. He then hurled himself out the side door, checking round the side of the church. Parker went to the front of the church, staring up at the statue of Jesus, before looking down at the ground. She never believed in God, or heaven, or anything after death for that matter. Her mother believed in reincarnation, and when she was little, Parker used to wonder if maybe that was something to believe in. It was a beautiful thought, leaving one life to start a whole new one all over again. But then people started getting sick, and dying left right and centre, only to come back hours, or even minutes, later as one of those...things. After that, Parker didn’t believe anything.  
  
“Yo, JC.” She turned her head to see Daryl approach the statue as well, giving it a look that Parker couldn’t read. “You takin requests?” He glanced over at Parker, looking her up and down before grumbling. Daryl stomped off towards the entrance, leaving her to her thoughts, whilst Rick walked back inside to Shane, who looked concerned whilst wiping the blood from his machete.  
  
“I’m tellin’ you, it’s not the right church.” He said through pants. “It’s got no steeple, Rick. There’s no steeple.” The bells practically screamed above them, and Daryl hurtled through the group to get outside, Parker running out as well as her brother rounded the corner of the church first. Everyone came to a quick stop at the sight of a speaker above their heads, the bells echoing through the wires that lead down into a small, metal box. Glenn chose to bite the bullet and yank it open, smacking a few buttons until the bells stopped, finally giving them some peace.  
  
“A timer.” Daryl breathed out, fed up of all the running he was having to do today. “It’s on a timer.”  
  
“I’m gonna go back in for a bit.” Carol said to the group before slowly making her way to the entrance of the church again and disappearing from Parker’s view. Glenn looked at his sister and sighed at the look of defeat on her face, knowing she had gotten her hopes up as well. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and led her inside the church after Carol, everyone else except Lori, Shane and Andrea following them inside at their own pace. The twins took a seat up on the right hand side of the front aisle, Glenn sitting forward and resting his head in his hands whilst his sister leaned back against the bench. She was watching Carol, who was standing directly in front of the Jesus statue, quietly staring into space.  
  
“Father, forgive me.” She eventually said, looking at the statue as if it were a real person. “I don’t deserve your mercy. I prayed for safe passage from Atlanta and you provided. I prayed for Ed to be punished, for laying his hands on me, and for looking at his own daughter, with whatever sickness was growing in his soul.” Parker felt her stomach churn with nausea and she stood up, running a hand through her hair, and quietly made her way to the double doors, needing some fresh air all of a sudden. The thought that Carol’s husband, Ed - one of the many victims in the attack on the quarry camp site - could think of his own daughter in such a way...it made Parker want to have Ed in front of her right there and then so she could kill him herself. She stood in the entryway to the church, staring out into the graveyard, before stepping down the concrete stairs and onto the fading green grass. Then she saw Daryl leaning against the apple tree near a cluster of graves.  
  
“You a believer?” She asked, motioning to the church once she was close enough to be in his eyeline. Daryl blinked at her, squinting his eyes due to the sunlight.  
  
“Nah.” He said after a moment, looking back at his crossbow. He had been making sure the arrows were securely attached to the quiver, not wanting them to fall out mid assault. He looked at Parker through the bright sun rays and watched as she pulled her hair up into a ponytail. Her straight black hair was long enough to reach past her shoulder blades now and once the hair tie was in place, she pulled the smaller, more layered sections of hair out around her face, not wanting all of it to be scraped back. “You?” Daryl found himself asking.  
  
“Nope.” She said, resting a hand on her forehead to shield the sun. “My mom was, Dad too. But I never thought of anything, or anyone, watching over us. Sounded stupid to me.” Daryl snorted.  
  
“Yeah. It is.” They were both quiet for a while, almost enjoying each other’s peaceful company for once. Since their confrontation at the highway, Parker had wondered why Daryl never bothered to get to know her. She had never been anything but polite and friendly to him, yet he pushed her, and everyone else, further and further away. Glenn had stopped trying to talk to Daryl days ago, only feeling the urge to be around him due to the debt he thought he owed. Back in Atlanta, Daryl tried to save him from getting kidnapped by bandits. It hadn’t worked, but Daryl had tried, and Glenn wouldn’t be able to forget that.  
  
The moment Parker found out Glenn had been taken she had panicked. Even though he was safe and sound with her at the camp again she worried for what might have happened to him. She remembered thanking Rick and T-Dog for going after him, knowing that some people would have just left him for dead, before going to Daryl. Before then, she hadn’t spoken to him much due to him constantly out hunting with Merle or just scouting the woods by himself. He was intimidating back then, refusing to talk to the others for more than a minute it he had to, and tried his best to keep to just himself and Merle. But now Merle was gone, so it was either talk to the group or go insane.  
  
Daryl hadn’t responded when Parker thanked him for getting her brother back in one piece, he barely even acknowledged her being there. He didn’t like that she was in his tent, even if she stuck to standing in the doorway, it was still a stranger in his tent. A stranger who just so happened to be a woman, which made everything ten times worse. He had just grunted and went back to cleaning his arrows. Parker left without another word and they barely spoke since. Not until the highway, where Daryl managed to find out some small information on her. She played guitar, so did her brother, and she didn’t believe in God.  
  
Parker was about to say something else, Daryl realised, before the group started to make their way outside and joined them at the tree. Glenn went to his sister and Daryl immediately took that as his opportunity to leave, not wanting the Asian kid to get pissed at him for so much as breathing the same air as his sister. Parker watched him walk away only to hear Shane clear his throat. She saw him saunter over, Rick a few paces back, and he looked agitated, as if he didn’t want to be here. She wasn’t sure if it was because the perimeter wasn’t safe, or because he was already giving up. He was a cop, surely he’d be the last to give up?  
  
“Y’all gotta follow the creek bed back.” Shane said, resting his shotgun at his hip. “Okay, Daryl you’re in charge. Me and Rick, we’re just gonna hang back, search this area for another hour or so, just to be thorough.”  
  
“So you’re splitting us up?” Daryl asked. “You sure?” Shane nodded curtly.  
  
“Yeah. We’ll catch up to you.”  
  
“I wanna stay too.” Carl insisted, looking at both Shane and his Dad. Parker bit her tongue, wanting to speak up, saying he should stay with the larger group, he’d be safer heading back to the RV. “I’m her friend.” Everyone was silent, then Shane looked away in order to conceal a smirk. Lori looked at her husband and sighed, readjusting the bag on her back.  
  
“Just be careful, okay?” She said, resting her hands on either side of Carl’s face.  
  
He nodded up at her. “I will.” He promised. Lori smiled and pulled him in for a hug, resting her chin on his head.  
  
“When did you start growing up?” She asked, making her son laugh into her shirt. Rick walked over to them, and seeing as they were standing right behind Lori, Glenn and Parker moved away to give them a moment. Glenn moved to the other side of the tree and rested his back against it, moving his baseball cap on his head so the sunlight wouldn’t hurt his eyes.  
  
“You don’t think we’ll find her, do you.” Parker said after a few seconds of silence. Glenn looked at his feet with a sigh.  
  
“I don’t know.” He said honestly. “I just, I want everyone to be safe, you know? I hate walking around out here, we could cornered by walkers or cut off from each other or even lose the way to get back.” His voice started to raise out of desperation but he calmed down once he saw his sister looking at him sternly. “I don’t want you to get hurt.” He finished, shoving his hands into his pockets and looking at the ground.  
  
“Hey. Look at me.” Parker said, getting his attention. “You’re worried, I get that. I am too. But we can’t give up on her, she’s just a kid. What would you do if it me out there, huh?” Glenn didn’t hesitate.  
  
“I’d stay out here alone if I had to. Day and night.” He realised his own words and smiled. She always had a way to get him to understand.  
  
“Exactly. Just because she’s not yours, doesn’t mean there isn’t any hope.” Parker looked over at the forest surrounding them, and felt a small smile tug at the corners of her mouth. She breathed some air from her nose and looked back at little brother. “We’re gonna find her. I know we will. And then we can get the hell out of here, find somewhere safe. Really safe.” Glenn took in what she said before smiling back at her. Parker quickly glanced over his shoulder just in time to see Daryl watching her. He must have heard every word because his face was soft, not turned up in anger like it usually was. He appreciated what she had said. He dropped his chin once, a tiny nod that signified his thanks, before slowly turning around and getting the group together, leaving Carl, Shane and Rick to travel further into the woods.  
  
The group had been walking back to the RV for about 20 minutes in silence before Carol stopped to sit on a fallen tree. Daryl had been keeping to the front of the group, doing as Shane instructed and leading them, with Glenn and Parker right behind him. Carol was near them, stumbling her way through the woods, with a silent Andrea and worried Lori even further back. Andrea was pissed, everyone could tell, after seeing Daryl hand his spare fun over to Lori. Before they first left that morning, Parker had seen and heard her arguing with Dale when he refused to give her the only gun she had. Her father's. He thought she was too reckless, too emotional right now for a weapon, and Andrea had been fuming ever since. Now Lori, a woman with even less experience than her, was allowed one? It had only added fuel to the fire.  
  
“So this is it?” Carol asked, turning to Daryl, Glenn and Parker once they realised she had stopped. “This is the whole plan?”  
  
Daryl shrugged at her, leaning against a tree with his crossbow securely over his shoulder. “Guess the plan is to whittle us down into smaller groups.”  
  
“Carrying knives and pointy sticks.” Andrea said bitterly, looking over at Lori. “I see you have a gun.”  
  
“Why, you want it?” Lori snapped back, much to Parker’s surprise. “Here. Take it.” She stepped forward and planted Daryl’s Smith and Western into her hand. Everyone just watched, silently taking in Lori’s concealed anger. Even Andrea looked concerned. “I’m sick of the looks you’re giving me.” Lori said, her voice strangely calm for someone who clearly wanted to yell, take her anger out for once. She then looked around at the rest of the small group. “All of you.” Lori then turned to Carol. “Honey, I can’t even imagine what you’re going through, and I would do anything to stop it, but you have got to stop blaming Rick. It is in your face every time you look at him.”  
  
Parker saw Carol’s face shift from sadness to embarrassment, and she wanted to step in. She knew what Lori was saying was true, but Carol was still fragile. She felt the need to blame someone so she didn’t blame herself, because that was what a mother would do. It was her child, of course she would take the blame. Even if it wasn’t her fault.  
  
“And when Sophia ran he didn’t hesitate for a second, did he? Not for a second.” Lori’s tone started to build into something bitter, and harsher. “I don’t know that any of us would have gone after her the way he did. Or, made the hard decisions that he had to make, or that anybody could have done it any differently.” Parker looked away. She had been right there when Sophia ran, she could have gone after her herself, maybe even before Rick. If she had tried harder, maybe…  
  
Lori shook her head at them all. “Y’all look to him and then you blame him when he’s not perfect. You think you can do this without him, go right ahead, nobody's stopping you.” She took a swig of water and Parker decided to finally step forward.  
  
“We aren’t going anywhere.” She said. Lori looked up at her. Parker wanted to avert her gaze but she knew she couldn’t, she had to show that they were loyal to Rick. They were grateful. “I trust your husband with my life, after everyone we’ve done. He’s brave, and he can lead us right. He’s done nothing wrong by us. He saved Glenn, I owe him a lot, and I’m not about to start doubting him now.” Glenn moved behind her and she felt his arm graze hers. He agreed. Lori shifted her gaze between the two of them and then sighed quietly. “We’re with him.” Parker finished, sneaking a look at Daryl, who seemed to be hanging onto every word. He seemed to agree with her too.  
  
“We should keep moving.” Andrea said after a moment of no one saying anything. She handed Lori back her gun and turned around to continue moving forward. Parker and Glenn picked up the pace, not wanting to be the last ones in the group, and she felt her brother shudder from the sudden cold breeze that blew over them. Parker turned after a while of them all walking in silence, wanting to make sure everyone was still in line, when she realised that Daryl was nowhere to be found. She frowned, scanning the woods behind and ahead of her, checking the sides too, only to come up with nothing. Just the vast wilderness. She edged closer to her brother, tapping his arm.  
  
“Where’s Daryl?” She asked quietly, not wanting the other women to hear just in case they started to panic. Glenn wasn’t their ideal leader, he was short and skinny and the gun he was carrying just made him look like a child holding a BB gun. He shrugged nonchalantly.  
  
“Probably went after a squirrel.” He said.  
  
“You aren’t worried?” Parker frowned. Glenn side eyed her. “What if he got hurt?”  
  
“It’s Daryl.” Glenn snorted. “Come on, Park. He’ll be okay. He’s the only one out of all of us that will be okay out here.” Park. She remembered how Daryl had called her that the day before. It was weird, hearing it from two people. One that had known her literally since the day she was born, whilst the other barely took notice of her since they met four months ago. Yet, they both made her feel comfortable.  
  
“I’m gonna see where he is, just make sure he’s not wandered off somewhere.” She said, looking at a small opening in the trees and starting to head towards it.  
  
“Parker, don’t.” Glenn said, grabbing her arm as she started to veer off to the side. “Come on, we need to keep searching. You’ll get yourself hurt looking for him, and I don’t mean you aren’t capable of taking care of yourself either, so don’t give me that look.” She flinched, realising she was probably raising an eyebrow without realising. “Just stick with us, okay? He’ll come back and we’ll carry on looking for Sophia. She’s the priority. He knows that too, and anyway, he’d yell at you for trying to find him.”  
  
Parker thought for a moment, weighing up her options, before laughing. He was right, as usual, Glenn was always right. “You're right. But if he’s not back at the RV when we get there, or soon after we get there, I’ll be worrying again.” Glenn smiled.  
  
“Come on. The creek’s just up ahead.” Glenn led the women through the forest for at least another 10 minutes before they found the small bank and stood on top of it, looking down into the water. It was calm and still, the entire area being completely silent. Carol edged towards the water and Parker kept an eye on her, just in case she fell in or decided to fling herself down in hopes of finding Sophia right were Rick had left her.  
  
“Should we wait?” Lori asked. Glenn shrugged.  
  
“I don’t know. I guess we just search around? Be quiet and stick to the trees?” He offered and seeing as no one else had any sort of plan, they all nodded in agreement. Andrea kept watch with Glenn, who stood on the other side of the creek, whilst Carol and Lori searched the large fallen tree where Rick had left Sophia, calling out her name softly and walking around the edge of the water to look for footprints or anything that gave them a clue as to where she had gone. Parker was walking through the water, ignoring the splashes on her calves and the ever growing puddle in the bottom of her boots. Sophia was the priority, she thought about Glenn’s words and kept repeating them in her head as she held her knife to her hip like a safety blanket.  
  
“Sophia?” Her voice was quiet, not wanting to get any unwanted attention, but clear enough for it to bounce off the leaf and mud covered walls of the creek. “Soph, it’s Parker! You out here, sweetie?” Parker trudged through the water until she came to a small forked route where the water was flowing both right and left, both heading off deep into the woods and out of sight. She frowned, looking both ways, before deciding to head left, and stepped up onto the forest floor so she could move quicker.  
  
The water was completely still here, compared to the other direction where it seemed to splash and ripple every few seconds due to the breeze. Parker continued on until she heard rustling in the bushes ahead of her. She unsheathed her knife as the rustling didn’t stop, and she crouched behind a thick tree. After a few seconds, she heard the sounds of footsteps, but they weren’t dragging across the floor like a walker’s would. She stood up, peering around the oak, only to sigh at seeing Daryl with his crossbow edging towards her. Once he saw her familiar face, he lowered it.  
  
“Thought you was a rabbit.” He muttered, looking disappointed at the sight of her, and Parker felt a tug at her chest. “You find anythin’?” He asked.  
  
She shook her head. “No. We’re searching the creek.” Then she noticed some squirrels hanging from the rope over his shoulder, along with the rabbit he had caught that morning, and she smirked. “Look’s like you caught us breakfast, lunch and dinner.” She said. Daryl tilted his head down to look at the dead animals, before looking up at her through his eyelashes.  
“Who’s saying its yours?” He asked.  
  
“No one.” She replied. “You’re just too good of a person to hold on to those yourself.” He scoffed. “You are. You’ve always caught food for us. Even back at the Quarry.”  
  
“‘Cos none of y’all know the first thing about huntin’. Or trackin’.” He said, throwing his crossbow back over his shoulder and heading back the way Parker came. She followed behind him, thankful that he wasn’t walking quickly this time.  
  
“That’s because we don’t have someone to teach us.” Parker then raised her eyebrows. “Unless you wanted to?” Daryl stopped mid step, almost causing her to collide with his back, and frowned at her.  
  
“You wanna know how to hunt?” His voice was dripping with amusement. He didn’t think she could do it, both of them were thinking it. Parker was a city girl, she knew how to shop until sunset, whilst Daryl knew how to build a fire and track down a deer for three days straight. They were aliens to one another.  
  
“If it helps me stay alive out here, then yes. I want to know how to hunt. And track.” Parker said bravely. Daryl shook his head, looking at the woods in front of him.  
  
“You gotta be kiddin’ me.” He grumbled to himself and Parker bit back a scoff. She was already in his bad books for existing, she didn’t want to seem uptight.  
  
“Look, I get it, you don’t believe in me.” She said, folding her arms over her chest, knife still in hand, the blade pointing directly at Daryl. “I know it would be a pain to teach me, but you can’t just do all of this on your own. You need help, Daryl. Everyone does.”  
  
He glanced at the knife in her hand and then stared into her eyes, as if trying to read her mind. Daryl didn’t teach people how to hunt, he didn’t exactly know where to start. He had taught himself mostly, with a little help from Merle and his old man, but a woman? A woman who had never even been camping before? That was a whole other story.  
  
“Just, have a little faith in me.” Parker said, even going as far as to smile at him. He sniffed.  
“Faith?” Daryl said, stepping forward. “What’s faith ever done for us?”  
  
“It’s kept us alive so far.” Parker retaliated, taking a step forward herself. Daryl looked physically uncomfortable at their proximity, but for once she had the upper hand and she wasn’t about to waste it. Maybe this was the way to get through to him. “We have faith in each other. That’s enough to keep us going. I have faith that we’ll find Sophia. I mean that, too. I wasn’t just saying it for Glenn.” She remembered Daryl looking at her gratefully back at the church. He had faith too, he just wasn’t sure how to show it. “We don’t need prayers, or God, or anything like that. If Carol wants to believe in that stuff, then fine. That’s her business. But me? I know if we work hard enough and work together, have faith in one another,” she motioned between the two of them with her knife hand, and Daryl leaned away from her slightly. “then we can survive. I have to believe that. And you? You just have to trust me.”  
  
Daryl stared at her for a long time, taking in every word. Eventually, he looked away and motioned for her to follow him. “We need to find the others.” Parker shook her head, but followed him anyway. Maybe Daryl Dixon was tougher to crack than she first thought, but she knew what she said was right, and she had a feeling he at least somewhat agreed with her. Parker and Daryl were walking up the creek, and could see the others in the distance, when Daryl stiffened. Parker was about to say something, when he held his finger up. At first, nothing happened, then there was a rustling in the bushes and Daryl twisted round and grabbed Parker’s knife right from her fingers, flinging it forward into the bush. They both heard a thud and Daryl eagerly went over to whatever he had managed to kill. Parker was frozen, everything she had just seen seemed to just whiz by without her registering it. How in the hell had he actually killed an animal that quickly?  
  
Daryl suddenly appeared from the trees, her knife in one hand, stained red and dripping with tiny droplets of blood, and a rabbit in the other, hanging from its ears. Daryl reached over to give Parker her knife back, then he saw her grimace. He looked at it, rolled his eyes, and smeared the bloodied blade across his pants before hanging it over again. “It ain’t poisonous.” He said gruffly. She sneered. She was about to retort with a sarcastic comment, still wanting to keep some of her pride, when a loud gunshot rang out through the air, and they both stilled. Parker turned around, Daryl looking over her shoulder, and they both waited for another gunshot, or a few more at least. Maybe Rick and Shane had stumbled into some walkers? Maybe Carl had accidentally set a gun off? But when the woods went back to being silent again, Parker felt her stomach drop. Why just the one?


	3. Sweet Dreams, Dixon

Parker tried to ignore the twisting feeling in her gut as the group made their way through the trees, having left the creek almost an hour ago and slowly getting closer to the highway, and tried to focus on finding Sophia. After hearing the shot the group had been on edge. Lori was looking back or stopping every once in a while, worrying about what it could have been, whilst the rest of them kept a lookout for anyone, or anything, that could suddenly appear and cause them trouble. The last thing they needed was an ambush.  
  
She kept herself between Glenn and Daryl, both men with their weapons close to their chests and eyes scanning the woods. Her own knife was back on her hip, but she was on red alert and every slight movement from behind a bush or in the trees made her hand fall to her side, getting ready to draw the knife from it’s holder if need be.  
  
“You need to relax.” Glenn said in a hushed tone, seeing his sister’s eyes dart around and her fingers twitch. “We need to focus on getting back. That gunshot could have been anything.”  
“It might have been Rick and Shane.” She said.  
  
“And it might not have been. _Parker_.” Glenn said more firmly and reached over to pull her in front of him. She paused before looking at him properly, taking in his worried expression. “Come on, they’ll be okay. They’ll stay safe, they have Carl to protect, and they want to find Sophia too. So we need to stick together and do what Shane told us to do, okay?” Parker looked away but Glenn bent his head down to catch her eye. “Okay?”  
  
She looked at him through her lashes but smiled. “Okay.” He returned the smile, but it quickly faded as they both turned at the sound of Andrea screaming somewhere down the line. Everyone turned around only to see Andrea’s blonde hair disappear behind a tree as she fell, and the snarling walker that suddenly stumbled from the bushes came with her.  
  
“Andrea!” Parker yelled and hurled herself towards her, yanking the knife from its holder as she rounded some large tree trunks to see Andrea on the ground, kicking and shoving at the walker that was already on top of her, snapping its broken jaw and leaning down to bite her. Parker was about to shove the knife into the walker's head when a voice called out from not to far away. A voice she didn’t recognise.  
  
“Get down!” Parker turned to see a horse galloping at full speed towards her, a young woman at the reigns with a baseball bat in hand. Parker threw herself to the ground across from Andrea as the woman leaned down and smashed the walker's skull with the bat. Andrea’s screaming stopped and she collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily and staring wide eyed at the stranger who just saved her life. The woman quickly slowed the horse down and Parker managed to steady her breathing enough to get a better look at her. Whoever she was, she was young, probably in her 20’s, with short brown hair that curled around her chin and bright green eyes. She was trying to steady the horse, who had clearly been spooked by the walker, and looking around the forest as if searching for somebody.  
  
“Lori? Lori Grimes?” She asked both Andrea and Parker, looking between them. They were both completely dumbfounded, but shook their heads. Daryl, Lori, Glenn and Carol all ran towards them, weapons raised, and the woman on the horse turned to them.  
  
“I’m Lori.” Lori panted, taking a few seconds to register what had just happened, but looked up at the woman and the horse curiously. Daryl’s crossbow was slightly raised at the stranger but Parker shook her head at him. He didn’t back down, not taking any chances.  
  
“Rick sent me, you gotta come now!” The girl quickly said, gripping the horse's reins in order to steady the frantic animal.  
  
“What?” Lori asked, just as confused as the rest of them. How did this girl know Rick? How did she know where they even were out here?  
  
“There’s been an accident, Carl’s been shot.” The girl stated and the colour on everyone’s faces drained almost instantly. Parker jumped to her feet and hurried over to the girl.  
  
“Shot? How did that-”  
  
“There’s no time to explain right now.” The girl said, but her voice wasn’t harsh, just firm. She knew they would be worried once she found them, it was a big pill to swallow. Carl was just a child after all, barely even 13. She looked back to Lori, determination in her eyes. “He’s still alive, but you gotta come now.” Lori’s mouth had dropped open and she was staring at the woman with wide eyes, not being able to process the information. “Rick needs you, just come!” She encouraged and that did it. Lori threw her backpack onto the forest floor and rushed to the horse, grabbing the girl's hand and allowing her to haul her onto the horse’s back.  
  
“Woah-woah-woah!” Daryl exclaimed, his crossbow instantly being lowered to his side again. “We don’t know this girl! You can’t get on that horse!”  
  
“Rick said you had others on the highway?” The girl said, her voice more frantic and urgent this time, and the mention of their makeshift camp caught everyone’s attention. She clearly needed to get Lori to wherever the hell Carl and Rick now were, and Parker could only assume that Shane was with them. Hopefully not too far away. “That big traffic snarl?” Glenn, who had been silent the entire time, was staring at the girl with his mouth open like a goldfish, and Parker just frowned at him. What was his deal?  
  
“Uh huh.” He nodded, dumbly, not being able to take his eyes off of the new girl.  
  
“Backtrack to Fairburn Road, two miles down is our farm. You’ll see the mailbox, it’s named Greene.” The girl ordered and then kicked the horse back to life, Lori gripping her waist to steady herself as she shook with fear. Then just like that, the horse took off; carrying both women into the distance and out of sight. The rest of the group was silent, Andrea still on the ground, whilst Carol hugged herself, now worried for more than one child. Parker shook her head, running a hand through her hair, before jumping as the walker that the girl had hit was now sitting up, growling at them all. She took a step away from it, then heard Daryl walk towards her.  
  
“Shut up.” He spat at the walker as it hissed at him, before shooting an arrow into its skull and walking away, barely acknowledging what he had done. As he walked off, Carol quickly went over to help Andrea up, Glenn hurrying over to his sister to make sure she was okay. "Keep up!” Daryl yelled as he got further and further away from them, seeing the highway up ahead.  
Parker yanked the arrow from the walker’s head, then helped Glenn grab both Andrea and Carol, dragging them through the forest behind Daryl. The second the highway barrier came into view, Parker felt her body surge forward even faster and she jogged up the hill and hopped over the barrier, just in time to see Dale stand from the top of the RV where he had been keeping watch. He stared at them all, confused as to why they were running, as well as wondering where the others were.  
  
“Where’s Rick? And Shane?” He called down, just as Glenn helped Andrea and Carol over the barrier. Daryl was already leaning against it, making sure the arrows on the bows quiver were straight. Parker looked over at him and then down at the arrow in her hand. Daryl’s eyes shifted, and he silently watched as she paused before wiping the blood on her jeans, leaving small, dark smears on her upper thigh, before handing the arrow to him. He almost wanted to scoff at her, seeing as she finally grew a pair and finally got some blood on her. But he didn’t. He just took it from her and licked his lips.  
  
“Thanks.” He grunted. She didn’t respond.  
  
“Dale,” Parker called up and the older man looked down at her, hoping for some answers. “Carl was shot.” His face fell.  
  
“Shot? What do you mean, shot?” He asked, making his way down the ladder and towards the group. T-Dog, who was hunched over on the edge of the RV with a woolly blanket wrapped around him, turned his head at Parker’s revelation.  
  
“I don’t know Dale.” She shrugged, biting her thumb nail nervously, looking back at the woods and praying that Carl would be okay with his parents, and Shane, at his side.  
  
“We weren’t there.” Glenn explained. “All I know is this chick rode out of nowhere like Zorro on a horse and took Lori.” Dale frowned at him and looked back at his sister. Parker nodded. He then looked at Daryl.  
  
“You let her?”  
  
“Climb down out of my asshole, man.” Daryl said crudely. “Rick sent her.” He said, referring to the girl on the horse. He then lifted himself from the barrier and stormed off towards his bike. “She knew Lori’s name, and Carl’s.” He looked pissed, Parker realised, and felt the urge to talk to him, but kept herself near the others, not wanting to annoy him any further. She was hoping he didn’t feel responsible for Lori leaving. It was a risk, sure, but if Parker was told Glenn had been shot, she would have gone without a thought.  
  
“I heard screaming, was that you?” Dale said, looking at Andrea. She was scowling at him but then turned away. Glenn stepped forward, rubbing the back of his neck.  
  
“She got attacked by a walker.” He said. “It was a close call.” Andrea shook her head at them all before storming into the RV, Dale spinning round to follow her.  
  
“Andrea, are you alright?” He asked, but she had already slammed the car door. Dale’s shoulders sagged and Parker felt bad for him. He was just trying to protect her, especially with Amy, her only relative, being killed right in front of her. Parker looked at her brother, who just looked tired and defeated after today, and walked towards the RV.  
  
“Dale, get out.” Andrea spat from the back of the vehicle once the door was shut. Parker walked up to her, seeing her hunched over on the bed, head in her hands. “I said-” She looked up, her eyes red and puffy from crying, but calmed down once she realised it wasn’t Dale. “Sorry. He’s the last person I wanted to to see in here.”  
  
“I get it.” Parker said softly, and sat down on the sofa opposite her. Andrea gave her a smile, one that Parker knew was forced, and ran her hands over her thighs. “You wanna talk?”  
  
“There isn’t anything to talk about.” Andrea said with a shake of her head. “I got careless, almost got taken out by a walker. That’s it.”  
  
“It’s not though, is it.” Parker said, leaning forward. “You can talk to me, Andrea. You’re not alone in this.” Andrea laughed humorlessly.  
  
“I am. You didn’t lose anything that night.” At first her voice was bitter, harsh, but Andrea bit her lip and sighed. “I didn’t mean-”  
  
“You’re right. I didn’t lose family, or close friends.” Parker said. “But I lost a member of a group who survived with me. We lost a lot of people back at the Quarry and a few more along the way. We’re all hurting.” Parker paused, seeing Andrea’s eyes well up with tears again. “Dale is…he’s trying to help. And I know you don’t think you want it, or need it, but he’s trying to make you see that you don’t have to deal with this on your own.”  
  
“How else can I deal with it?” Andrea asked, small sobs escaping her mouth and making her body shake. “Amy’s gone, she’s all I had left.”  
  
“And I wish I could bring her back for you.” Parker said sincerely, getting on her knees in front of Andrea and gently taking her hands. “I hate seeing you like this. I don’t know how to help you, I just don’t. I never saw my family since everything happened, neither did Glenn, so we don’t know where they are or if they’re even still alive out there.” Andrea quietened down, watching Parker closely. “My sisters...my mom. If they are out there, they’re alone. I want to find them, but I know I can’t. That’s what’s killing me. The not knowing.” Parker smiled up at her friend, ignoring the strong urge to cry. She rubbed her thumb over Andrea’s knuckles. “I will never say you’ve had it better off, because you haven’t. Not at all. But you know Amy is at peace now, and I think that’s a good thing.”  
  
“Why?” Andrea’s voice was quiet, timid almost. Parker had never seen this side of her before, but it showed that she was getting somewhere. Andrea was normally loud and fierce, but now she was weak and scared. Like the rest of them.  
  
“You know she won’t ever have to face the horrors out there. What we’ve seen, what we’re going to see. She doesn’t have to lose anyone else, or see anyone die. There’s no more risk. She’s safe.” Parker smiled at her. “I know it’s gonna be tough for you, I can’t even imagine what you’re feeling right now. But please, let us help you through this. Dale included, if you can. He hates seeing you broken, we all do. We don’t want to start causing feuds now.” Andrea eventually nodded. “We need to make sure the kids are safe. After that, maybe we can try and start over. Somewhere new; safe.”  
  
“If there is anywhere that’s safe.” Andrea said quietly. Parker bit the inside of her cheek.  
  
“There’s gotta be. It may be miles away, it may take us weeks. But we’re gonna find something good. I know we will.” Parker rested a hand on Andrea’s shoulder and nodded towards the door. “Come on, we need to figure out our next move.” She then headed towards the exit, but heard Andrea call her name.  
  
“Thank you.” Andrea said, wiping at her eyes and folding her arms. Parker smiled. The two women jumped out of the RV, being met with the rest of the group stood in a circle, all talking in hushed voices. Glenn looked to his sister and she smiled. Dale glanced tentatively at Andrea, who just nodded at him once. For now, they were okay.  
  
“Where did this girl take Lori?” Dale asked “What did she tell you?”  
  
“She said there was a farm somewhere down the road, past the highway.” Parker responded with a shrug. “I’m guessing that’s where Rick and Shane are too.”  
  
“We should go.” Dale said with a nod. “Make sure they’re okay, see if we can help somehow.”  
  
“I guess that’s our only real option here.” Glenn said, walking to his sister.  
  
“I won’t do it.” Carol said, shaking her head. “We can’t just leave.”  
  
“Carol,” Dale said gently, “the group is split. We’re scattered and weak.”  
  
“What if she comes back and we’re not here?” Carol demanded. If there was anywhere that little girl would go for safety, it would be where she last remembered being. With her mother. Carol saw the expressions on people’s faces and she faltered. “It could happen.”  
  
“If Sophia found her way back and we were gone, that would be awful.” Andrea said. Parker nodded.  
  
“They’re right, we can’t just abandon everything we’ve done so far.” Daryl, who had seemingly calmed down, stood up from where he was lent on his bike.  
  
“Okay, we got a plan for this.” He said. “I say tomorrow mornin’s soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig a big sign, leave her some supplies.” Carol felt tears sting her eyes at Daryl’s words. “I’ll hold here tonight,” he continued, “stay with the RV.”  
  
“If the RV is staying, then I am too.” Dale said firmly, giving Carol a look of determination.  
  
“Thank you.” She said quietly. “Thank you both.” Daryl just looked at his feet. Andrea smiled, raising her hands in defeat.  
  
“I’m in.”  
  
“We all are, Carol, we aren’t going to stop trying.” Parker said, reaching over and patting her shoulder. Carol touched her hand in thanks and sniffed, wiping her nose.  
  
“Well, if you’re all staying, I am too.” Glenn said but Dale held his hand up.  
  
“No Glenn, not you.” Both Parker and Glenn looked at him in confusion. “You’re going. Take Carol’s Cherokee.” Glenn paused but then scoffed.  
  
“Me?” He asked. “Why is it always me?”  
  
“You have to find this farm, reconnect with our people, and see what’s going on.” Dale said, but then pointed to T-Dog, who was still hunched over in the corner cradling his ripped up arm. “But most importantly, you have to get T-Dog there.” Everyone looked over at their wounded friend, who just smiled with a painful flinch. “This is not an option. That cut has gone from bad to worse, he has a very serious blood infection.” They all went silent. Daryl turned away, much to Parker’s confusion, and started rifling through the bag attached to the back of the motorcycle. “Get him to that farm, see if they have any antibiotics. Because if not, T-Dog will die. No joke.” Parker ran a hand through her hair, the other resting on her hip; her index finger nervously tapping at the hem of her shirt. No one else was dying, not on her watch.  
  
She looked up after hearing Daryl root around the bike for a moment, watching him as he walked up to the group with dirty rags in one hand, and a large zip-lock bag full of pill bottles and drugs in the other. She stared wide eyed at the bag. It was huge, filled with orange and white bottles and there was a smaller bag filled with blue crystals tucked into the bottom, alongside a see through packet of white powder. Daryl turned to Dale and threw the rags at him.  
  
“Keep your oil rags off my brother’s motorcycle.” He warned. He then put the bag onto the hood of a car and opened it. “Why didn’t you say anythin’? Got my brother’s stash.” Everyone watched as he pulled out bottle after bottle, reading the labels and frowning. “Crystal. X, don’t need that.” Parker felt a smirk forming on her lips. This man was full of surprises. “Some kickass painkillers.” Daryl threw a bottle at Glenn, who easily caught it and began reading the label, as if it were too good to be true. Which technically, it was. “Doxycycline.” Daryl confirmed to Dale as he handed him a bottle. “S’not the generic stuff neither. S’first class.” They all blinked dumbly at him. Daryl just shrugged. “Merle got the clap on occasion.” He then took the bag and went back to the motorcycle, everyone watching him go. Parker just grinned, shaking her head in amusement at him. Carol looked disgusted, so did Glenn, but Dale looked more than relieved. T-Dog was gonna be okay, he could sense it.  
  
“How come you never told us you guys had that?” Parker found herself asking as she wound up beside Daryl and his bike after everyone went about their own business. He was dusting it, spitting into a small, black rag and rubbing the gleaming metal. He shrugged.  
  
“No one ever asked.” Parker chuckled.  
  
“That’s because we weren’t interested in _those_ types of drugs. But the prescription drugs? Those are useful.” She said, folding her arms. “You should have told us about them sooner, you know.” Daryl looked up from where he was crouched by the bike, squinting at her due to the sun still beating down on them even though it was late afternoon now.  
  
“You gonna yell at me or somethin’?” He asked, clearly tired of being judged in the group. So what if his brother had a drug stash > Everyone on his old neighbourhood had one. If you didn’t, you were considered the freaks, or at least so dirt poor that you couldn’t even smuggle some dope. Daryl was almost thankful for Merle’s addictions. Almost.  
  
“No.” Parker said simply, which made Daryl frown. “I wanted to thank you.”  
  
“For what?”  
  
“For giving those drugs to T.” She said. She hesitated before crouching down beside Daryl and looking him in the eye. He blinked, not expecting her to keep getting so close to him, but didn’t move away. “I know you're not his number one fan right now. What happened on the roof back in Atlanta was rough, and I don’t think Rick should have done it.” Daryl looked at the bike and continued to rub the rag over it, making it shine and sparkle. Parker remembered the supplies group coming back to the camp with not only Rick in tow, but with news that Merle was handcuffed to the roof of a department store. Parker had been furious at Glenn, not thinking he could ever agree to something so...inhumane. She didn’t particularly get on with Merle Dixon, but that didn’t mean he had to be abandoned. The group didn’t seem to see it, but he was just as useful as Daryl. He had knowledge on weapons and hunting, just like his little brother, and was strong. Really strong. Plus, he wasn’t afraid to speak his mind, which could be both a blessing and a curse depending whose side he was on that day.  
  
Parker licked her lips, watching him work on the bike. “I just...thank you. For not only giving him the drugs, but for saving his ass when the horde came. You didn’t have too, but you did anyway. It means a lot, to everyone, not just him. Or me.”  
  
“S’nothin’.” Daryl shrugged, suddenly looking bashful. Parker couldn’t help but find it weirdly adorable. Yet, she still felt sad. He obviously wasn’t used to compliments, especially coming from this group. They always criticised the Dixon’s. No wonder Daryl didn’t want to hang around with them that much.  
  
“It’s not nothing.” Parker said. When Daryl still wouldn’t look at her, she reached over and tugged the rag from his fingertips, leaving his hand in the air with nothing to do. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye and she smirked. “Need a hand?” She offered, waving the rag. Daryl chewed on his lip but nodded.  
  
“You not afraid you’ll get dirt on ya?” He said, his voice almost teasing her. She scoffed.  
  
“I need to grow up.” She said with a laugh. “It’s the end of the world, we’re all gonna get dirty from now on.” Daryl huffed and Parker accepted that as the closest thing to an actual laugh that she’d get.  
  
“Alright. Just rub the rag over the metal bits here, here, and over here.” Daryl instructed, pointing at various parts of the bike that Parker didn’t dare to even question the names of. She would be lost after a couple of seconds, so she just accepted it as a big shiny bike with lots of parts that needed cleaning. Simple.  
  
“What are you gonna do?” She asked.  
  
“Watch. Make sure you’re doin’ a good job.” He said and stood up, much to her surprise, and hopped into the boot of a car only a couple of feet away. “I’m takin’ a break.”  
  
“Oh thanks.” She rolled her eyes, but smiled, and started to rub the rag over the bike. Daryl watched her intently. He watched the way she carefully polished the bike, not wanting to scratch it, and bit her lip as she concentrated on rubbing out the dirt in between the engine and above the tires. He wasn’t used to seeing someone else other than him or Merle tend to the bike, and especially not with such care. Even Merle, the proud owner of the Triumph Chopper, was careless and tended to scratch or dent it without meaning too. Daryl had cherished it when Merle first brought it home. He remembered feeling his heart swell with excitement and he was about to run outside to his brother, wanting to beg him to go for a ride on it, only to have his father yell at him to stay indoors. Their father, Will Dixon, hated that bike. Despised it in fact. He had stormed out of the house, dirty old wife beater sticking to his sweaty chest and bulging beer belly, screaming at his eldest son for bringing ‘this heaping pile of shit’ onto his property.  
  
Merle had driven off that night on the bike and hadn’t come back for 2 weeks, leaving Daryl to his father’s mercy, or lack thereof. He had been 15, and he still remembered falling asleep at night shaking and trying not to cry, hoping to hear the roar of the motorcycle engine outside. When Merle did return, he didn’t say anything to Daryl, just went upstairs and locked himself in his dingy old room. Their father didn’t comment on the bike again, just glared at it from his sofa chair, tutting at it, and downing more beers.  
  
“This was your brother’s, right?” Parker’s soft voice pulled him from his thoughts and Daryl sat up.  
  
“Huh?”  
  
“The bike. It was Merle’s wasn’t it?” He nodded after a moment.  
  
“Yeah. Why?”  
  
“No reason. It’s nice. I’m surprised he didn’t come back for it when he…” She trailed off. _After he cut off his own hand to get out of the handcuffs and cauterised the wound by himself._  
  
“Probably forgot. Wanted to get away from Atlanta.” Daryl said, fiddling with a loose piece of fabric on his trousers. He really needed a new pair, but didn’t want to start searching through cars when they should be looking for that little girl. He had priorities, and hygiene wasn’t at the top of his list anymore. But then again, it never really had been.  
  
“Makes sense. Just wish he’d come back, you know? We could have bandaged his wound properly, so he didn’t have too.” Parker said, standing as she finished polishing the bike to her liking. Daryl looked over it and felt like clapping. She had done a good job, a really good job.  
  
“He never let me ride it.” Daryl spoke up suddenly, just as Parker put the rag away into the small bag that was attached to the back of the bike.  
  
“Really? But you seem like you know what you’re doing with it.” She said, walking up to him and sitting on the edge of the car boot, his foot dangerously close to her upper thigh now. Daryl swallowed.  
  
“Was a waste of fuel to just have that and the truck. Bike’s faster, swifter. Easier to get away on.” Daryl explained, ripping the thread from his trousers and letting it tumble to the tarmac below. Parker nodded. “You gotta just learn how to do things now.”  
  
“Yeah. I guess you do.” They both sat in silence for a while. For once, it wasn’t uncomfortable or forced. They both just sat there, watching the birds and the highway and their group milling around. Glenn was trying to haul some of the tanks of water into the RV, wanting to make it last in case they suddenly have a shortage of food. Parker looked at her hands that were now resting in her lap. “What I said back at the church.” She said softly. Daryl looked up, almost not hearing her correctly. “I meant it. I did.” She glanced up at him, tucking a piece of black hair behind her small ear. “We’re gonna find her. Sophia’s gonna be fine, Carl will get better, and maybe we can all find somewhere safe to really settle down. To start living again.”  
  
“You really think that’ll happen?” Daryl asked. No sarcasm, no anger, just pure curiosity. He wanted to believe her, he really did, but it was starting to get harder and harder to believe that. “Find somewhere safe?”  
  
“We have too.” Parker said. “It can’t be like this forever. It can’t be.”  
  
“What if it is?”  
  
“I refuse to think like that.” Parker said. Her voice was firm, but she had a smile on her face. And for a brief, fleeting moment, Daryl genuinely believed her.  
  
When Glenn and T-Dog decided to leave, after hours of scouring the cars for any last minute supplies, Parker felt her heart tug at the thought of her brother driving off into the middle of nowhere. Once T-Dog was wrapped in his blanket inside the car, resting against the seat and slowly dozing off, Parker went up to her brother, handing him an extra bottle of water from her backpack.  
  
“Park, I’ve got enough.” Glenn chuckled, handing it right back to her. “Seriously, T and I will be okay. I promise.”  
  
“Just, please don’t get yourself hurt. Okay? Just find the others, make sure they’re okay. For all we know, Shane and Rick found Sophia and she’s with them right now.” She said the last part quietly, not wanting Carol to hear and get her hopes up, but there was always that small chance.  
  
Glenn nodded and wrapped an arm around her, bringing her close to him. “We’ll be fine. Just stay close to Dale and the RV, and take care of Carol.” Parker nodded into his shoulder and breathed out slowly. “She needs somebody, and Andrea is still on edge, Dale will be on watch most of the night, and Daryl isn’t one for comforting.” She snorted but pulled away.  
  
“He’s not as heartless as you think, Glenn.” Parker said. “He’s just...awkward.”  
  
“Either way, he isn’t going to offer her a cup of coffee and a shoulder to cry on.” Glenn joked, putting his bag into the backseat of the Cherokee.  
  
“I can’t do that either. Not anymore.” Parker said with a sad smile. Her brother sighed.  
  
“I know.” He then gave her one last nod before looking over at Dale, who had already taken his place on top of the RV. “If something goes down, come find us. Straight away, understand?”  
  
“Loud and clear.” Dale called down. Carol and Andrea waved them off whilst Daryl sat on his bike, hands resting on his thighs. He watched Glenn pull away from the RV and weave his way through the sea of cars before taking off down the highway in the direction the girl said. Andrea and Carol looked at the sky, that had now turned a deep, navy blue, and headed into the RV. Dale leaned back into his pull out chair, rifle in his lap and binoculars in hand, leaving Parker and Daryl outside. Alone.  
  
“I’ll help Dale with the look out.” Parker said, leaning against the RV. Daryl didn’t move. “Go on, you haven’t slept properly in days. You need the rest if you’re going back out there tomorrow.” She pointed at the woods and Daryl grunted.  
  
“Fine. But wake me in 4 hours.”  
  
“Make it 6 and you’ve got a deal.” Parker insisted.  
  
“I don’t need-”  
  
“I ain’t arguing, I can tell you’re exhausted. So go.” Parker ordered, a smirk on her lips. Daryl’s eyes wandered to them but almost instantly snapped back to her eyes. He eventually got off the bike and headed inside. He saw Andrea at the table, trying to assemble her father’s gun, whilst Carol was already asleep on the makeshift bed in the back. He looked around, weighing up his options, before settling on the floor between the kitchen sink and the table.  
  
“You gonna be okay down there?” Andrea asked, not looking up from her gun that was now completely taken apart on the table. “I can move.”  
  
“Nah, I’ve slept on worse.” Daryl said, easing himself onto the floor and throwing a small cushion under his head. He didn’t realise how tired he actually was until he closed his eyes. Within seconds he was out cold, and tried not to picture Parker Rhee smirking down at him for being right.  
  
He dreamt of Merle being in the woods, stumbling with his cut off hand against his chest. He was bleeding out, fast. Daryl ran towards him but Merle kept yelling at him to stay away from him, that he wasn’t his brother. He was a monster just like the walking dead that seemed to follow them wherever they went.  
  
“I ain’t like that!” Daryl shouted, chasing after his brother. He heard Parker and Glenn calling out for him somewhere in the distance. “Just come back with us, man! We can help-”  
  
“I don’t need no help!” Merle yelled, stopping and raising his left hand in anger, his fist making a beeline straight for Daryl’s jaw. He closed his eyes, waiting for the blow, but when it didn’t come he slowly opened them again. He was in a different forest this time. It was brighter, more colourful and full of life. Deers were walking around and rabbits were hopping through the bushes. Birds chirped and he could hear crickets all around him. Daryl frowned as he realised he was lying down. He tried to sit up but felt a hand on his chest, making him stop. He looked up as he felt a weight on his hips and stared wide eyed at Parker, who was smiling down at him with bright eyes. She looked different, more alive. She wasn’t too pale anymore, no bags under her eyes from lack of sleep. Her eyes were vibrant and gleaming against the sunlight. He never realised how golden brown they were until now.  
  
“What’s wrong?” She asked, her voice quiet against the chatter of the forest. Daryl stumbled with his words, trying to speak without stammering. He then realised what she was wearing. A light blue sun dress that made her jet black hair look even darker in comparison. Her fingers started dancing up and down his chest and he gulped as he took in the fact her legs were either side of his. She was _straddling_ him...in a goddamn _forest_.  
  
“Where are we?” Daryl managed to get out. “Why are you dressed like that?”  
  
“Don’t you like it?” She asked, her face falling slightly. She let her fingers run over the smooth material before reaching down to take his hands in her own, letting his hands run over her sides and her hips and the tops of her thighs where the hem of the dress lay, flowing around her legs and covering his hips. “I picked it out because it matched your eyes.” She said, leaning down to stare deep into his eyes. Daryl shivered. He felt uncomfortable. He wasn’t used to someone being this close to him, especially someone like Parker. Why the hell was he even dreaming of her anyway?  
  
“We need to go.” Daryl said, scanning the forest for any signs of walkers. Parker giggled, she actually fucking _giggled_ , and bent down so more of her weight was pressed into his lap. Daryl stiffened and she bit her lip.  
  
“You’re not used to this, are you?” She practically purred and her fingers reached up to tangle into the hair at the nape of his neck. “A girl in your lap, being so gentle with you. Why is that?”  
  
“Seriously, Parker, we need to leave. It’s dangerous, Merle was just-”  
  
“He’s gone, remember? They all are.” She said casually, not paying much attention to what he was saying, but rather tugging at his hair and watching Daryl shudder. “There’s nothing dangerous here, Daryl. I promise.”  
  
“What are you talkin’ ‘bout? I heard Glenn...where is he?”  
  
“Far away. No one’s going to bother us. So relax, okay? It’s just me.” She grinned and leaned down to his ear. “I’ll keep you safe.” Daryl wanted to throw her off of him and run; get her out of the forest or at least somewhere that wasn’t so...creepily pristine.  
  
“Parker...listen to me-”  
  
“No, you listen to me, Dixon.” She said, poking a finger into his chest. “You’re going to be a good boy and be quiet for me, okay? Just relax, you’ve been so tense. Fighting and running and hunting. You need a break…” She pressed her palms flat on his shoulders and gently pushed him to the forest floor, grinning as his mouth dropped open in shock.  
  
“Parker-”  
  
“Haven’t you been picking up the signals?” She whispered into his ear, her breath so warm against this cool skin it made him shiver. “Why I always want to talk to you...be around you...help you.” She moved her face so it was right above his, and ran her hand through the front of his hair. “Please, let me take care of you.” She leaned down and just as she was about to capture his lips with her own, he heard crying in the distance.  
  
“That’s Carol.” He said hoarsely, his voice almost nonexistent at this point. Parker shook her head.  
  
“She’s fine.”  
  
“No, I need to see if she’s okay.” His breath suddenly hitched as he felt Parker grind her hips into his. This was all new and way too much for him. But he couldn’t ignore the fluttering in his stomach as she kept moving above him, running her hands over his arms and intertwining her fingers with his own, moving his hands so they were on either side of his head.  
  
“Are you sure you wanna go, Daryl?” His eyes shot open and he felt his throat close up, making him cough violently. He tried to sit up without making too much noise but he failed miserably.  
  
“What the hell? Are you alright?” Andrea’s voice made him jump and he sat back against the kitchen cabinet as he stared at her wide eyed. She looked startled, clearly not expecting him to wake so suddenly. Daryl breathed deeply through his nose, trying to catch his breath, before turning his head at the sound of crying. It really was Carol, it wasn’t just a dream. She was sobbing into her pillow, trying to muffle her whimpers and wipe away any fallen tears. Daryl sighed, resting his head against the cabinet.  
  
“Daryl?” His head shot up at the sound of Parker’s voice and he saw her standing in the doorway, staring at him curiously. “You okay? I was just about to wake you up.”  
  
“M’fine.” He grunted and jumped up from the floor. He wiped his forehead, feeling sweat transfer onto the back of his hand, and gulped. He then looked over at Carol in her bed, crying her eyes out, and he realised he needed to leave. Right now. “I’m goin’ out. Gonna look for the girl.” He said, not giving either Andrea of Parker a chance to respond, before barging past them and out the door. He grabbed his crossbow from the bike and rushed over the barrier and into the woods, ignoring Dale calling his name.  
  
He ran for almost 5 straight minutes before his lungs started to burn and his knees began to tremble under his weight. He stopped at a large tree and doubled over, heaving and gasping for air. He eventually managed to stand up straight, throwing his crossbow securely over his shoulder, and lent his forehead against the bark. The hell was that dream? He had never thought of Parker in that way before, even when Merle suggested he should try and ‘get a piece of that’ back in the Quarry. He thought his brother was being crude as always, but he sometimes found himself watching her back, just to make sure she was safe. But never like _that_. He'd never dreamt of something so intimate before. Not with anyone. Daryl shifted and suddenly realised his trousers were a hell of a lot tighter than they had been a few hours ago and he groaned in embarrassment.  
  
“What the hell.” He grunted angrily. It was like he was some prepubescent teen all over again. After a few more minutes of calming himself down and finally getting his sense back, Daryl moved away from the tree and straightened up. He readjusted himself the best he could, ignoring the nagging thought in the back of his mind that the dream he had had felt real, very, very real, and moved forward into the forest. It was nothing, it had obviously been nothing. It was just the end of the world and he was a single guy with no woman at his side. Yeah, he thought, that was definitely it.


	4. Blessed Be God

The farm was hard to miss, and Parker leaned forward in the passenger seat of the RV to get a closer look as Dale followed Andrea driving in the deep green Toyota; something Shane had picked up days ago before the highway. She stared at it, taking in the vast green and orange fields, huge barn and the white and olive mansion that loomed in front of them. It was two stories high with balconies on either side of the house - a good place for look outs if they needed them - and a long porch that ran around the entire house. She sat back in her seat, looking over at Dale. He seemed just as stunned, but chose not to say anything. It was all too good to be true. The place was completely untouched, secluded from the rest of the world. On the drive up there she had noticed a sign further down the dirt track that led to a nearby town, and she made a mental note to tell Glenn when they had a moment alone, knowing supplies would be useful to collect now that they were all back together and with another group.

“You think he’s okay?” Parker asked quietly as Dale pulled the RV to a stop at the end of the drive. Ahead of them, Andrea parked the Toyota and Daryl’s motorcycle screeched to a halt. He seemed to stare at the house with just as much confusion as the rest of them. “Carl, I mean. Do you think he made it?”

“I certainly hope so.” Dale said. “So far, we’ve all seemed to get past whatever's been thrown at us.”

“Yeah.” Parker said. “We have.” She exited the RV a few moments later, Carol not too far behind her; she had driven behind them in a light blue truck they had found on the highway, giving the group another vehicle to use if need be. She was clutching a shawl around her shoulders and shivering, even though the heat was beating down on them all. Daryl and Andrea came back empty handed that night, and she had retreated to her bunk after helping Dale keep watch. Carol had cried all night; it was obvious by her red rimmed eyes and quivering bottom lip.

The moment they all stepped out, a horde of people all swarmed out of the house. Rick and Lori were ahead of the rest, standing next to an elderly man and two young women. Parker recognised the taller of the two as the woman who took Lori in the woods whilst the other was much younger and shorter, skinnier too, with pale blonde hair and even paler skin. They looked vaguely similar, and she assumed they were related. Parker noticed her brother’s baseball cap sticking out from behind Rick and she walked over, pulling him into a hug. He sighed into her hair.

“Is he okay?” She whispered and Glenn nodded.

“Yeah, he’s gonna be fine.” He pulled away and smiled at her, and Parker couldn’t help but let out a small laugh in relief.

“Thank god.” She breathed. Dale stepped forward and turned to Rick.

“How is he?” He asked, referring to Carl. Parker stepped back so she was no longer in front of Glenn, and turned to Carl’s parents, both of them looking at least a little well rested compared to when she last saw them.

“He’ll pull through.” Lori said with a smile. “Thanks to Herschel, and his people.” Lori looked over at the elderly man, and Parker instantly felt the urge to thank him, but Rick spoke up.

“And Shane.” He said, his voice slightly hoarse. Parker shuddered. He must have been crying and yelling the moment Carl got shot, any parent would have been. “We’d have lost Carl if not for him.” Parker turned to look at Shane and nearly gasped at the sight of him. He was wearing denim overalls that were way too oversized, and his hair was no longer thick, brown and curly. It was now buzzed down to his scalp, allowing a small scar on the right side of his head to be put on full display. When had that happened? After a pause, Dale hugged Rick, thankful that his friend’s son was alive. Carol did the same to Lori, talking to her in a hushed tone with a look of relief on her face. At least she could be happy for a little while, Parker thought.

“We were so worried.” Carol said as Lori let her go.

“How did it happen?” Parker asked Rick, and he turned to her with a small shrug.

“Hunting accident.” He drawled. “That’s all it was, just a...stupid accident.” She frowned.

“Who shot him?” Hershel and his people looked away sadly and Parker felt Glenn tense beside her.

“Our man, Otis.” Hershel spoke up for the first time. His voice was low and soft and Parker couldn’t help but feel comforted by it. Everyone was so brash and gruff these days, it was nice to hear a friendly, welcoming voice. “He helped retrieve supplies for the surgery. But he didn’t make it.”

“I’m sorry...I shouldn’t have said anything.” Parker looked away, but Hershel shook his head.

“It’s only fair of you to ask. You weren’t here, you didn’t know.” She nodded, grateful for his kind tone, and watched him walk to the front of the group. “We’re having a service for him.” Herschel announced. “I know not all of you met him, or even knew him, but we would appreciate you coming to pay your respects. He was one of us. A decent human being. He deserves a burial surrounded by loved ones.” Rick nodded and as if on cue, the rest of his group did too. Glenn led his sister over to a cluster of trees near the barn where a large pile of stones had been placed. Otis’s grave. She reached out for Glenn’s hand and he took it instantly, giving her a comforting squeeze. Hershel and his people gathered on the left side of the grave whilst Rick and his group gathered on the right. Daryl stood closest to the grave, not that he looked too pleased about it. He looked even more ticked off once Parker stood at his side, and she saw him physically flinch and shuffle away. She refused to say anything about it now, it wasn’t the time to ask if she had done anything to piss Daryl off, again.

Parker watched as Beth, Hershel’s youngest daughter, stepped forward and placed a rock on top of the pile, taking a moment to stare at it before walking back to Maggie, Hershel’s eldest; whom Glenn still referred to as ‘Zorro on a horse’. Parker held her brother’s hand and watched sadly as Hershel stepped forward holding a bible. It was moments like these where she tried her hardest to believe in something, even if she was 100% atheist at this point in her life. She wondered what it was like to believe in something greater, a power that’s supposed to protect and comfort you in times of crisis. But so far, no one had come to their rescue.

“Blessed be God.” Hershel said to the group, who all had their heads down in respect. “Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Praise be to Him, for the gift of our brother; Otis.” Jimmy, Beth’s boyfriend, stepped forward, dropping his farmer’s hat and placing a stone on the pile. “For his span of years, for his abundance of character. Otis. Who gave his life to save a child’s. Now, more than ever, our most precious asset.” Parker let out a sigh, thinking about Sophia and Carl, whilst Daryl looked over at her, but she didn’t look back.

She was staring at the grave, not wanting to believe that they were really having a funeral. She knew deep down that she may have to attend a lot of these now, too many perhaps. The thought of that made her stomach churn and she looked at her feet. Glenn stepped closer to her and kept her hand tightly in his own. He was the best at comforting her, no one else knew her like he did. And no one ever would.

“We thank you God,” Hershel continued, “for the peace he endures in your embrace. He died, as he lived. In Grace.” He gently shut the bible and took a step back, before looking over at Rick’s group. “Shane?” Parker looked up to see Shane stare at Hershel with what looked like a scared expression. Glenn had told her on the walk up that Shane saw it all go down. He saw Otis get cut off and taken out by the walkers, and he’s been quiet about it ever since. “Will you speak for Otis?” Hershel asked. Shane swallowed and his eyes darted around the group frantically. He looked trapped, almost claustrophobic, and Parker wasn't sure if he was about to pass out or storm off.

“M’not good at it.” He said, his voice low and gravely. He looked down at his shaking hands.

“I’m sorry.” He mumbled.

“You were the last one with him.” Patricia, Otis’s wife, now widow, spoke up. She was crying and staring at Shane in pure desperation. She needed closure, it was obvious to everybody. “You shared his final moments. Please! I need to hear. I need to know his death had meaning.” Parker noticed Shane shift on his feet, not being able to meet anyone’s eyes. Eventually, he found enough courage to speak.

“We were about done.” He said, remembering that night. How dark it was, how many walkers surrounded them. The fear he felt. Not only for his life, but for Carl’s. He had to get back to him. “Almost outta ammo, we were down to pistols by then.” Everyone was silent, either watching Shane, or staring at the grass underneath their feet. No one dared to speak. “I was limpin’.” Shane explained, and Parker glanced at his feet to see a small bandage wrapped around his upper right ankle. He never stood on it for too long as he spoke. “It was bad. Ankle all swollen up.” He paused, and Parker let her eyes flicker to him. His face was riddled with sadness, guilt. He had seen an innocent man die that night, and he couldn’t save him. No wonder he was still shaken up. “We gotta save the boy.” He said suddenly, and Lori looked up in shock. Her eyes welled with tears and she gripped her husband's hand, a similar reaction on his face. “See that’s what he said. He gave me his backpack he shoved me ahead. Run, he said. He said I’ll...I’ll take the rear, I’ll cover you. And then when I looked back…”

Shane faltered, and everyone around him felt the weight of his words on their shoulders. He then slowly limped over to the grave. “If not for Otis.” He said, his voice louder and much clearer than before. There was a hint of something in his tone that made Parker shiver. She didn’t know what it was, but there was something weird about Shane, something different. He hobbled to the wheel barrow Beth had brought out that had been filled with stones minutes ago. Now, only a few remained, and Shane took one of the smaller ones in his trembling hands. “I would have never made it out alive. And that goes for Carl, too. It was Otis.” He was back to sounding sad now, and he placed the rock onto the pile, patting it gently with his hand. He then turned to face the others one more time. “He saved us both. If any death had meaning, it was his.”

Patricia, who was silently crying, nodded at him in thanks. After a few silent moments, Hershel gently led her, his daughters and Jimmy away and back to the house. Rick and Lori, followed by Carol, Andrea and Shane, went after them. Glenn let out a long sigh and pulled on his sister’s arm, motioning for her to follow him, but she shook her head. Parker smiled at him.

“I’ll be there in a minute.” She said softly and Glenn nodded, giving her some space. Dale walked past her and rubbed her shoulder comfortingly before walking up to the farm house with Glenn, who turned to look over his shoulder at his sister. She didn’t know Otis, never even knew he existed until today, but he knew she would feel guilty over his death. If it hadn’t of been for their group coming into the woods, searching day and night for Sophia, maybe Otis wouldn’t have gotten killed out there. Shane wouldn’t have had to of seen it either, nor hurt himself in the process. Physically and mentally.

“You okay?” Parker’s head whipped round, her hair flying across her face, and she stared at Daryl. She had forgotten he was there, standing right next to her. She swallowed and nodded.

“Yeah just, sad is all.” Daryl squinted his eyes at her, his face crinkling in confusion.

“Why?”  
“People are just going to die now.” She said quietly, wrapping her arms around her body as if to steady herself. “That’s what this world is now, right? Just, death.”

“Thought you was goin’ on about a safe place.” Daryl said, moving from his spot and standing closer to her. “S’what you said yesterday. You already given up on that?”

“No.” Parker’s voice was firm. “I haven’t given up. I know there’s a place we can stay it’s just...I don’t want anyone here to die. Ever. From a bite or from something else. I hate death.” She spat. Daryl hesitated, but then moved to stand in front of her, blocking her view of Otis’s grave. She frowned up at him.

“Death happens. It happened before, it’ll happen now. Can’t escape it, you just have to know how to deal with it.” He said gently and the two stared at each other for a while, neither feeling the urge to look away, before Daryl hung his head and walked off to the others. Parker breathed in the warm, morning air and wiped at her eyes, not wanting the tears that were threatening to fall run down her cheeks. He was right. She pulled herself together and stepped towards the grave, placing a tiny stone, almost a pebble, onto the very top of the grave. She smiled down at the rock pile.

“Thank you for saving Carl. And Shane. You’re a good man.” She whispered, then pulled her hand away and headed up to the cluster of cars up at the house. Rick and Hershel were talking to each other, the others milled around setting up their tents and chairs, laying out any supplies they still had on them. Patricia and Beth were nowhere to be seen, and Parker assumed they had gone inside. Shane, Daryl and Andrea were all leaning on the Cherokee, and Hershel and Rick eventually walked over to them. Parker hurried over to them and stood beside Andrea, just as Maggie showed up, a large map rolled up in her hands..

“How long’s this girl been lost?” Hershel asked, and Parker realised Rick must have told him about Sophia at some point, maybe before the others showed up.

“This’ll be day three.” Rick said and Maggie placed the map on the hood of the car, rolling it out so everyone could see. It was a map of the area and Parker hadn’t realised how large Hershel’s land really was. It spread out for miles, acres and acres of fields with rivers and ponds and forests surrounding it. She saw the highway run across the map the had roads and junctions leading off in all directions. She wished Glenn could teach her how to read maps better, wanting to know how to get from point A to point B if she ever needed too. But for now, she relied on the others for navigation. She’d get the hang of it soon enough.

“County survey map.” Maggie explained, wiping her hand across the paper so the wrinkles unfolded. “Shows terrain and elevations.”

“This is perfect.” Rick said with a positive nod. “We can finally get this thing organised. We’ll grid the whole area, start searching in teams.”

“Not you,” Hershel said with a shake of his head, “not today. You gave three units of blood. You wouldn’t be hiking fives minutes in this heat before passin’ out.” Parker stared at Rick in shock. How much blood had Carl lost? Hershel then looked at the four on the hood opposite him. “And your ankle.” He directed at Shane, who had quickly thrown on a new set of clothes the second he got his car back. He wore a fitted, navy button down and a matching hat with POLICE printed in white across the front. His baggy overalls had been replaced with tighter, more durable combat trousers. “Push it now, you’ll be laid up for a month. No good to anybody.” Both men looked defeated at Hershel’s words, and Parker felt bad for them. They desperately wanted that girl back here with them, with her mother. They were cops, it had been their job once upon a time. It was in their blood to protect people.

“Guess it’s just me.” Daryl huffed and reached over to point at a long stretch of water in the middle of the wooded area on the map. “Imma head back to the creek, work my way from there.”

“I can still be useful.” Shane spoke up. “Drive up the interstate, see if Sophia wandered back there.”

“Alright.” Rick agreed. “Tomorrow then. We’ll start doin’ this right.” He said, and Hershel nodded.

“That means we can’t have our people out there with just knives.” Shane pointed out. “We need the gun trainin’ we’ve been promised.” Andrea and Parker both looked at Rick, both agreeing with Shane’s statement. It was stupid to have people out there looking without knowing how to protect themselves, let alone someone else who might be hurt or trapped. Hershel, however, looked sceptical.

“I’d prefer you not carrying guns on my property.” He said firmly. Rick looked at him with a frown. “We’ve managed so far without turning this into an armed camp.”

“With all due respect, we get a crowd of those things wanderin’ in here-” Shane tried to say but Rick stepped in.

“We’re guests here.” He said. “This is your property, and we will respect that.” Rick looked at his best friend and Parker held her breath. He then laid his gun onto the hood of the car gently, retracting his hand and leaving it there. Shane didn’t look happy, but he shrugged his shoulders and did the same.

Eventually, once the small group had settled on having Dale first on watch with a rifle, much to Hershel’s initial hesitation, everyone else planned to stay in camp to help set up and get things settled for the night. The next day would be when the first real search party would head out. That included Rick, Shane, T-Dog, Andrea, Daryl and Parker. At first, Glenn had refused to let his sister go out there, pleading with her to stay and go on runs with him instead so he could keep an eye on her. But Andrea had stepped in before the twins were at each other's throats, telling Glenn that if Parker wanted to help, then she could.

“Sophia liked her,” Andrea said, “Parker would be a friendly face for her when we find her. Besides, we’ll take good care of her.” Glenn was still looking uncomfortable.

“I don’t know-”

“Glenn, come on.” Parker said, taking his arm. “I’m not going to do anything stupid or get lost. I’ll stick right by Andrea, I promise.”

“Actually, she’s with me.” T-Dog appeared from behind them all, his arm now bandaged and clean. He looked a lot better than the last time Parker had seen him and she felt relieved. “Someone needs to look after my sorry ass, and I’d rather it not be the pissed off white dude with the crossbow.” Glenn snorted.

“So you’re gonna leave that pissed off white dude with my sister? Thanks man.” T-Dog raised his arms in apology but Parker smacked Glenn’s shoulder.

“Daryl wouldn’t hurt me, you’re being stupid.”

“I’m being careful!” He protested, rubbing his aching shoulder. He almost forgot how hard his sister could hit sometimes. But Glenn saw the defiant look in her eyes. She wanted to go, she had to. She wanted to make sure Carol could finally sleep at night without crying, that Carl would have someone to play with at camp, that a little girl wouldn’t be lost in the woods forever. He sighed and rolled his eyes before tilting his head towards Daryl. “You don’t wander off from him, alright? Stay where he can see you.”

“I will. Anyways, if I did wander off he can just track me down. He’s good at that, remember?”  
“Make anymore jokes and I’ll make Dale your new babysitter.” Glenn threatened, and Parker smiled. “But that’s tomorrow. Tonight, you stay here, in camp. You understand?”

“Yes sir.” Parker saluted him with a roll of her eyes, making Andrea and T-Dog chuckle. Glenn shook his head but walked over to where Maggie was stood waiting for him on the other side of the camp. Rick had told her to go to Glenn if she wanted to go the village down the road, naming him the expert in scavenging for supplies. Glenn seemed nervous at the thought of being alone with Maggie, and Parker smirked as he stuffed his hands into his pockets and cautiously looked the farmer’s daughter up and down. Stupid boy already had a crush.

She watched them walk to the stables and then turned to see Andrea and T-Dog go to the rest of the group to help set up their belongings. Parker and Glenn were having their tents side by side, and their things were already safely packed inside. Her knife was still at her hip but she had shrugged off her oversized shirt, giving it to Carol who seemed to already be busying herself with doing people’s laundry. A distraction, Parker sadly realised. She was left in her navy vest top and jeans, and it felt good to feel the sun on her arms and shoulders for once.

She looked over at the farm house, seeing Rick sat by himself on the porch steps, and she made her way over to him. They didn’t talk all that much, but since he saved her brother’s life, she had tried to make an effort to see how he was now and then. Plus, he seemed to be their leader now, so he had her full respect.

“You feeling alright?” Parker asked and Rick looked up at her. “You gave him a lot of blood, you’re not feeling light headed?” Rick shrugged, turning his Sheriff’s hat over in his hands.  
“Not often, but sometimes.” He admitted. Parker folded her arms over her chest and sat down beside him. Neither spoke for a few seconds, but then Rick looked at his feet. “I thought I was goin’ to lose him.” His voice was faint, but Parker heard him nonetheless. She looked at him carefully, studying the lines on his face that suggested his age but also showed the stress he had gone through. Waking up from a coma to this? Parker wouldn’t have been able to survive the way he had. He had more fire than any of their group put together.

“But you didn’t.” She said. Rick glanced at her. “When I heard Glenn was taken by those guys back in Atlanta I...I thought I’d never see him again.” She bit her lip and tucked her hair behind her ear. “That scared the shit out of me. He’s my family, all I have left. Losing him...I wouldn’t have been able to go on.” Rick slowly nodded his head, understanding what she meant. “But I didn’t lose him. He came back to me, against all odds. And so did Carl.” Parker smiled at him and sat up straight. “You did good, Rick. With Glenn and with Carl. You saved them both.”

“Shane saved Carl.” Risk’s voice sounded bitter, but he seemed to regret it instantly.

“You both did. You’re his father, Rick. Carl isn’t going to forget that.” Parker said. Rick smiled for a brief second in thanks, and flipped his hat over in his hands again. There was a scuffle of dirt across from them and they both glanced up to see Daryl wander out from behind some trees. Parker noticed him zip his trousers up and she glanced at the side of the house before her eyes travelled back to him. She scoffed; what a nice way to show his thanks for the Greene’s giving them a place to stay.

“Daryl!” Rick called out, getting the rednecks attention. He hiked his crossbow onto his shoulder and stared at the two of them, his eyes focusing on how close they were to one another on the porch. Daryl sniffed and pressed his thin lips together. Rick stood up, Parker following suit, and took a few steps towards him. “You okay on your own?”

“I’m better on my own.” Daryl replied, turning and beginning to walk away. “I’ll be back by dark.” Parker jogged to Rick’s side, her hand pushing her flyaway hair from her eyes. They both watched Daryl walk further and further away, and they both tried to follow him.

“Hey!” Parker called out and Daryl stopped mid step, his shoulders hunching forward before relaxing. He didn’t want to show either of them that he was uncomfortable around her right now. He hadn’t spoken to her properly, bar Otis’s funeral, since his dream. It still made his head spin and his stomach twist and being around her just brought flashes of her in that dress and straddling his lap and it was too much. He didn’t want that, he hated it in fact. And having her follow him around like a lost puppy just made it all the more worse. “Just wait up a sec.” Parker breathed out and Daryl turned to face them properly.

“We got a base.” Rick said. “We can get this search properly organised now.”

“You gotta point? Or we just chattin’?” Daryl asked rudely, walking forward with a glare.  
“His point,” Parker said, “is that you don’t need to go out there. Not on your own at least. You can rest, eat. Whatever you want. It’s not on your shoulders.” She said, her hands now on her hips. Daryl barely glanced at her, not wanting to give her the satisfaction that he was listening to her. Because he wasn’t.

“She’s right.” Rick said. “You’re off the hook. You don’t owe us anythin’.” Daryl looked between the two of them before turning his back on them without a second thought.

“My other plans fell through.” He spat and stalked off to the woods, gripping his crossbow a little too tight. Parker let out a sigh, but then turned at the sound of the farm house door squeaking open. Hershel stepped out, a map in hand, and spotted the two standing at his porch. Parker nodded at him.

“You should go.” She said to Rick. “Looks like he wants you for something.” Rick paused but nodded, popping his hat back onto his head, and walked over to their new host. Parker then turned and made her way back to her tent. She hurried inside, moving the flap over so no one could see what she was doing, before pulling another oversized shirt she had found on the highway, a black and red one this time, out of the stolen suitcase and shrugged it on. She then grabbed a small backpack from the corner and grabbed a flashlight, in case it got dark, some water and a couple of protein bars. Just to be safe.

Parker then quietly stepped out of the tent, whipping her head from left to right and scanning the campsite. No one seemed to be around, thankfully. Parker zipped up her tent and made her way towards the woods, following the dirt trail that Daryl had walked down that led past the wire fence that surrounded the farm and out into the open space. She heard commotion coming from far in the distance and she noticed a group gathered around a well, probably checking the water supply. Nowadays, you couldn’t be too careful when it came to clean water. If a walker managed to get in and contaminate it, that would be it.

She was just about to hop over the fence when she heard someone cough. Her head snapped to her right where she saw Carol standing with a bucket full of wet laundry. Parker gulped, seeing Carol stare at the guilty look on her face.

“Thought Glenn said no leaving the camp today?” She asked.

“You heard that?” Parker groaned, stepping down from the fence and glaring back at the camp, mentally torturing her brother with her mind for being so protective.

“Pretty sure everybody heard it.” Carol said. “He’s really careful with you, isn’t he.”

Parker shrugged. “I guess. He thinks I don’t know what I’m doing. That I’ll get myself hurt.”

“You probably will.” Parker frowned as Carol smiled at her. “But then again, anyone here could. Shane did. Glenn has every right to be worried about you. You’re his sister. If he found out you were sneaking off he’d panic. And sneaking off with Daryl? He’d go insane.”

“It isn’t like that.” Parker stared at the ground, feeling as if she was being scolded by a teacher. Carol didn’t say anything, just looked at her. She then hiked the bucket up onto her hip and stepped forward, getting close to Parker’s ear.

“But I didn’t see you. So everything I just said doesn’t matter.” She left Parker standing there, stunned, and walked off to camp with a big smile on her face. Parker stared after her, wondering how this woman had gone from grieving mother to helping her escape Glenn’s watchful eye in a matter of hours. But she didn’t want to waste the chance, so she hopped over the fence not a moment later and hurried off after Daryl.

***

The house was in the middle of a clearing about an hour from the creek, and it loomed over him, shading him from the sun as he stepped towards it, crossbow raised. This was the first sign of humanity Daryl had seen in the woods bar the church and the farm, and even though it looked wrecked and abandoned, he stilled hoped Sophia had been there. He trudged forward but slowed his pace and lightened his steps as he got to the porch, not wanting to alert anyone, or anything, that might be inside. He then pushed the front door with his shoulder, raising the crossbow to his eye and scanning the front hallway. There were stairs directly in front of him, a living room to his left and a kitchen to his right. Further down the hall sat a dining room and a downstairs bathroom.

Daryl tip toed through the kitchen, carefully opening cupboards and trying to find anything he might be able to bring back with him, only finding two cans of beans on the way. He headed into the living room next, taking in the sight of dusty furniture and overturned chairs, pictures barely hanging onto the walls above him. The chandelier was grey with dust and rot and he stepped over sprawled out papers that were littered across the floor. Whoever had stayed here before had left in a hurry, and that made his skin crawl. He stayed alert and checked the dining room and bathroom, once again finding nothing. Eventually, he made his way upstairs and rounded the first corner on his left, only for his nose to catch something strong not too far away.

Daryl frowned, gripping the crossbow, and stepped forward into a room to see a trash can just next to the door. He spotted the source of the strong smell and realised it was a half opened sardine can, with nothing but the liquid left inside. He brought it close to his face and sniffed, wincing at the strong odor, but realised it was recently opened. Someone had been here, or was still here. Daryl put the can back into the trash can and looked up to see a small cupboard door partially opened. He moved forward silently, like a cat trying to catch a clueless bird his brother used to say, not moving his eyes from the door. Daryl reached his hand out and after a pause he yanked the door wide open and lunged forward with his crossbow.

Nothing.

But then he saw the small pile of blankets and pillows, cans of food littering the floor, and Daryl realised someone had used the tiny cupboard as a place to sleep. He felt a sense of hope fill his chest. Only a kid could stay in here comfortably. Then his heart stopped as a creak sounded from behind him and he span around on his toes, hoisting his crossbow to his eyes and firing without hesitation, instinct taking over. He opened his eyes wider at the sight of someone crouching on the floor, shielding their face, and he dropped his weapon with a hard glare.

“The hell are you doin’ here?” He spat aggressively, staring down at a shaking Parker Rhee who only narrowly missed having an arrow in her eye. Parker stared at him, moving her hands away from her head, and straightening herself up. She turned her head to look at the arrow that was now lodged in the hallway wall, just beneath a clock that had stopped working long ago, and then looked back at Daryl. “I almost shot you!” He hollered, not caring that he was making a racket. If anyone had been in the house with him they would have come out by now.

“You didn’t think to see what it was first?” She bit back, her heart continuing to beat at an alarming rate. Her life had practically flashed before her eyes the second Daryl pulled the trigger and it was a mystery how she had ducked so quickly. She had seen that crossbow kill countless rabbits and squirrels in seconds; that could have been her if she was one second too late.

“Thought you was a walker.” He growled, pushing past her and moving back out to the hallway to retrieve the arrow, yanking it from the rotting wood with a grunt. “The hell were you thinkin’? What if I killed you, huh?” Parker faltered and shifted her gaze. Daryl nodded in disgust. “This is why I don’t want you around. You’re puttin’ yourself and me in danger.”

“I’m putting you in danger?” Parker practically gaped at him. “What the hell does that mean?”

“Glenn and Rick would have my head if you got hurt. Don’t you get it?” He barked, storming downstairs. Parker hurried after him, gripping the banister and trying to match his pace. Daryl kicked the back door of the house open that led from the kitchen to the open clearing outside and raised his head, searching the area with his eyes. “SOPHIA!” He yelled, making Parker jumped as she stood on the back steps.

“Daryl-” Parker tried to say but he spun back around to face her.

“The hell were you doin’ out here anyways? You followin’ me or somethin’?”

“Yes!” Parker yelled, her patience wearing thin now. “I followed you, okay? I followed you because I didn’t want you out here on your own when you could have someone covering your back!”

“Cover my back?” Daryl snorted in amusement and shook his head at her. “You’re delusional, girl.” He growled. “You ain’t even shot a gun before!”

“I have a knife.” Parker argued, but knew how pathetic that sounded. A knife wasn’t much anymore. Daryl just scoffed, loudly.

“Oh yeah, that makes me feel real protected, right there. Just go home, I don’t need no help.” He said. “Don’t need no city girl followin’ me round.”

“The hell is your problem with me?!” Parker shouted, moving away from the porch and getting in Daryl’s face. He stumbled ever so slightly, not expecting Parker tiny body to intimidate him, but for some reason her angry expression and clenched fists, along with her tense shoulders and firm stare, made him still his movements. “You’ve been avoiding me since the highway, what have I done? Huh? All I want is to help, not just you, but everyone else at camp! I hate sitting around and doing nothing when I know I can try and help find this girl! I know I’m inexperienced, that I don’t know how to use a gun, or fire an arrow, or even read a goddamn map! But I have guts and that means something!” She was seething and Daryl could almost imagine steam coming from her ears. “I’m not useless! I know we’re going to find her, and that’s why I followed you. Because I know you can find her!”

“Just go back, Parker.” Daryl said with a shake of his head, his voice gruff and tired. He just wanted to be left alone, why did no one understand that? “Go back and bother somebody else. Trust me, you ain’t good at much else.” Parker’s jaw dropped open a fraction and Daryl raised an eyebrow at her. He had won this time.

Humiliation rushed through her and she felt her face flush red. Daryl threw his crossbow over his shoulder and stomped away from her and back into the woods, just wanting to find the girl in peace, and left her in silence. Parker wiped at her wet eyes, hating that fact his words got to her like that, and stood up straight.

“If you think being cruel is going to put me off, then do your goddamn worst!” She yelled and Daryl faltered. “I’m not giving up because some redneck thinks he’s better than me. What, because you’re used to it out here? You know how to handle yourself? Well guess what, that doesn’t mean shit if you can’t even handle talking to another human being for more than 5 seconds without shutting down or walking off because you’re afraid!” Daryl spun around, his eyes practically burning a hole in her head. But she stood her ground, even when he started stomping towards her.

“I ain’t afraid of nothin’!” Daryl growled, getting closer to her than either of them expected. Parker flared her nostrils in rage and tilted her chin up.

“Don’t lie to me, Daryl.” Parker said with a shake of her head and a sigh. “It’s written all over your face whenever I talk to you. Whenever Rick or Dale or Glenn try to talk to you. But you know what? If you don’t want my help, if you don’t want anyone’s help, then I’ll stop. I’ll leave you alone. You win.” Parker shrugged and Daryl blinked at her. But then his aggressive demeanour clawed its way to the surface and he sniffed, glaring down at her.

“I don’t want your help.” He retreated slowly, wishing he could just find something to shoot, when Parker’s voice called for him again.

“Are you sure you wanna go, Daryl”? He stopped mid step and his heart kicked into overdrive. His stomach twisted, remembering the exact same words she had spoken to him in that dream. Hands on his chest, bright, devilish smile on her lips, thighs either side of his hips. He turned to look at her in confusion, trying to hide the look of fear on his face. Parker wasn’t looking at him anymore, however, but at something else further away from them. Christ, he actually imagined her saying that to him. He really was starting to lose it. He followed her gaze and realised she was staring at a small cluster of flowers near the bushes just opposite the house. He frowned.

“What?” He asked, walking over to her. “S’just a buncha flowers.”

“You’re one with nature, right?” She asked sarcastically, raising her fingers to make air quotes. He bit his lip, resisting the urge to throw back a smart ass comment, and shrugged in response. “You know what those are?” He turned and studied the flower, seeing the white petals and tiny yellow dots inside of it. The flower was raised above the grass and bending towards them, almost begging to be picked and taken away.

“Cherokee Rose.” He said quietly. He remembered hearing the story from his brother when he was first taken out hunting in the woods. He knew what they represented, and the meaning they held within their petals. And he sighed. “What about it?”

“I’m taking it back with us.” Parker said. Daryl watched her walk over to the flower and gently pick it from the ground. He scoffed.

“That ain’t gon’ do nothin’.” He said bitterly and Parker stood up, shaking the hair from her face.

“You can stop being negative right now.” She said firmly, placing the flower behind her ear and walking towards the woods. “I won’t hesitate to kick your ass if you say anything like that again.” Daryl grimaced.

“It’s just a flower.”

“It represents something, Daryl.” Parker said over her shoulder. “Besides, it’s better than coming home completely empty handed.” Daryl watched her leave, hopping over a few fallen branches and try to navigate her way back to camp. Badly. He sighed and secured his crossbow on his back before taking off after her. He didn’t want to be around her, but at least if he got her back to camp safe, Glenn wouldn’t want his head on a spike.

Thankfully, Glenn wasn’t back at camp by the time they arrived. He was still on a supply run with Maggie, and Parker tried not to feel anxious for him, as it had been about three hours now. The walk through the woods took longer than she expected when she first headed out, but with Daryl telling her where to go, or at least he grunted at her when she seemed to go the wrong way, they arrived just as the others were cooking up some dinner. She ignored the strange looks from Lori and Dale, as they weren’t used to seeing Daryl and Parker spending time together. Especially in the woods, alone.

Parker didn’t care whether Daryl was following her as she made her way into the RV, noticing the bag of laundry propped up outside of it. She stepped in, and smiled as she saw how clean it was. It hadn’t been this clean...ever. Cups were stacked neatly next to each other whilst the plates were piled high in size order, the cutlery all folded away inside a drawer and out of sight. The bed was made and the sofa in the back had its small, pull out table set up in front of it, where Carol was sat stitching up a shirt.

She looked up at the sound of the RV floor creaking and gave a small smile to Parker. She was back to being sad again. “I cleaned up.” She explained, noticing Parker’s eyes wandering around the pristine RV. “I wanted it to be nice for her.”

“For a second I thought I was in the wrong place.” Parker joked and Carol smiled and a breath of air escaped her nose; the closest thing to laughter since Sophia went missing.

“You didn’t find anything?” She asked eventually.

“I’m sorry. We’ll all try again tomorrow, with more people and with more time to search.” Parker promised and Carol nodded, letting her head drop so she could focus on her stitching. Parker hesitated, but then took a small cup from the kitchen area, filled it with water, and plucked the white rose from her hair, gently placing it in the cup and setting it down on the table in front of carol. The older woman frowned and looked up at her.

“A flower?” She asked curiously. Parker smiled, then sat down on the bed opposite her, propping her arms up on the table to lean forward.

“My mom was a gardener before all of this.” She said. “Glenn and I used to watch her plant seeds for hours every day when we were kids, listening to her name each one and tell us what the flower would eventually look like and how tall it would grow. She didn’t make any money from it, she just did it because she liked it, and I admired her for that.” Carol blinked at her, and Parker carried on. “We’d ask her to tell us the meaning of our favourite flowers sometimes. We didn’t know much about them, just thought that they looked pretty. Then one day, I saw this one. It was in our neighbours garden, all on its own. I thought it was beyond beautiful, but I always thought it looked lonely. Growing there all by itself with hundreds of other plants around it.”

“It is very beautiful.” Carol whispered.

“It’s a Cherokee Rose.” Parker said, stroking one of the flower’s petal with her finger. “Mom told us that when American soldiers were moving the Indians off their land, the Cherokee mothers were always grieving and crying, because they kept losing the little ones along the way. Disease, exposure, starvation. It broke them. The trail of tears, they called it.” Parker blinked and retracted her hand from the flower, folding her arms together and licking her lips. “They cried so much, that one day the elders said a prayer and asked for a sign to lift the mother’s spirits. Keep them strong.” Parker and Carol made eye contact and neither looked away as she spoke. “Give them hope. And then the next day, this rose, started growing right where the mother's tears fell.” Parker reached out and took one of Carol’s hands in hers, her heart aching as she felt them tremble. “I believe, that my mother told me this story so I could tell you, today. To give you strength, and hope. Because...I know we’re gonna find her, Carol.” She watched her wipe stray tears falling on her cheeks and Parker smiled at her. “This rose bloomed for Sophia. For you.”

“Thank you.” Carol whispered, her voice shaking and quiet, but her face told Parker that she felt better. Grateful. They sat in silence for a few moments, both staring at the flower, and praying that Parker’s words were really true.

“She’s gonna really like it in here.” They both looked up to see Daryl standing in the small walkway of the RV, leaning against the counter. He was fiddling with his shirt awkwardly, and Parker could tell by the way his eyes were focused on her that he had taken in every word she said. And maybe, just maybe, he believed her too. And she smiled at him.


	5. Ain't Nobody's Bitch

Days passed before Parker decided to finally bite the bullet and cut her hair. To anyone else it would have seemed rather petty to get attached to something as simple as the length of her hair, but since she had been thrown into the apocalypse, Parker realised a lot of things were going to change. Her appearance for a start. She used to have more meat on her bones, but with months of living off of canned beans and rice her figure had slimmed down even more; her rib cage gently pressing against her skin whenever she looked in the mirror, almost making her look hollow. She hated how frail she looked, how angular her cheeks were and the bags under her eyes did her no favours. The worst however was her hair. It was ratty, not being touched by a pair of scissors for nearly half a year, and was tangled and dry at the ends. She ran her hand through it, grimacing at the greasy feeling at the top of her head, and realising she needed it gone. Not all of it, but enough to at least make her feel better.

At first, she considered asking Glenn to do it for her. They had grown up with their mother cutting their hair and she had been hoping he had picked up a thing or two. But the second she handed him the scissors he backed off, protesting that he didn’t want to be the reason his sister’s hair was lopsided. She then thought about doing it herself, but felt like she would end up at the same conclusion. One half shorter than the other. So in the end, once most of the camp had left to search for Sophia, part of their daily routine since arriving at the farm, Parker turned to Lori. She had been cutting Carl’s hair since this had all started, and his hair always turned out perfect, or near enough to perfect as you could get nowadays.

She was assisting Carol with hanging up the wet laundry and Parker felt a pang of guilt hit her. She was taking time out of Lori’s chores only to give her another. But she held her breath and walked over with a smile, nodding at Carol on her way past. The two had grown closer since Parker had found the Cherokee Rose, and Carol seemed to come to her when she was feeling the most down. As the days went by, that seemed to be less and less. Parker often ended up just sitting with her whilst she slept, afraid she’d hear her wake up in the night screaming or crying for her daughter. It never happened, but she still refused to abandon Carol now.

“Lori?” Parker asked, gaining the other womans attention just as she was pinning some jeans to the washing line. “Can I...can I ask you a favor?”

“Sure, what is it honey?” Lori asked, flinging one of Carl’s shirts over her shoulder and propping a hand on her hip.

“Um...this is gonna sound kind of stupid.” Parker nervously chuckled, “But, would you mind cutting my hair for me?” Lori blinked at her and Parker felt Carol’s gaze on her too, making her turn pink. “I know it isn’t a priority-”

“No, no I’ll do it.” Lori grinned, putting the laundry down and turning to Carol. “You okay on your own for a little while?” Carol smiled.

“Of course. Take as long as you want, I’ll be here if you need a second opinion.” Parker smiled thankfully and led Lori over to the bench next to the campfire, where everyone’s seats had been placed in a circle for when they ate dinner at night. That was one small moment each day that Parker cherished. At least they still got to eat together, like a family. Lori pulled up a bucket and sat down on one of the deck chairs that Dale had brought over, patting the ground in front of her. Parker hesitantly sat cross legged on the grass and handed her the scissors.

“Just a trim?” Lori asked, threading her fingers through Parker’s long, thick locks and tugging at the knots. Parker flinched at the pain biting at her scalp, but she shook her head.  
“I was actually hoping to cut it short.” Lori cocked her head.

“How short are we talkin’?” She asked curiously. Parker thought for a moment, then brought her hands up to jaw, then lowered them every so slightly so they were hovering just above her shoulders. Lori smirked and raised an eyebrow. “So, pretty short?”

“If that’s alright.” Parker said, turning to her. “I don’t want to put any pressure on you.”

“Trust me, as long as you sit still, I can do it. Carl won't even sit still for his bangs to be cut.” Lori laughed and started separating Parker’s hair into sections, brushing long strands over her shoulders and combing her fingers through it. “So what's with the sudden change?” She asked.

“It’s getting kinda gross.” Parker admitted sheepishly and Lori chuckled. “Plus, maybe its safer? Having it short means it’ll be harder to grab onto or get caught on something, right?”

“That’s true. Maybe I should get mine cut.” Lori considered but Parker shook her head gently, not wanting to disrupt Lori’s work.

“No, don’t. Your hair’s beautiful.” Parker said with a small smile. “I wish mine was like yours. Just curly, not weird and wavy.”

“Hush.” Lori tutted, patting her shoulder. “Lets not start getting jealous over looks, that’s the last thing we should be worrying about.” Parker then heard the snip of scissors and she held her breath, feeling strands of hair fall down her back and into the bucket Lori placed behind her. As she cut off a few more inches, Lori felt Parker’s stiffened shoulders and she leaned over her. “Hey, sweetie. Don’t worry, it’ll look great. I promise.” Parker nodded.

“I just...I was never brave enough to ask for it this short.” She said. “Plus, my mom would never have let me anyway. She was pretty strict about my hair, Glenn’s too.”

“Why’s that?” Lori snipped along the ends and slowly made her way up Parker’s hair, longer pieces falling into the bucket every few seconds.

“She hated change. She hated us changing. Thought we were growing up way too fast.” Parker snorted. “I think she wanted us to stay babies forever.”

“All mother's do believe me. Do you know where she is? Where your sisters are?” Lori asked quietly, hoping that she hadn’t struck a nerve. Parker shrugged, sadly, and fiddled with her hands.

“Home, I guess. If Michigan is still standing that is. If not...I have no idea.” There was a long silence before Parker bit her lip, that had started trembling, and she sniffed. “I just hope...that even if she didn’t make it, or my sisters didn’t, that they went out peacefully. Not like...Otis. Or Amy.”

“They might still be out there, Parker.” Lori said, getting out of the chair and walking around to kneel in front of her. “Never give up hope. Rick didn’t, and somehow he found us again.”

“He did.” Parker agreed and smiled at Lori. “Thanks.” Lori reached over and kissed her forehead, stroking Parker’s cheek before pulling herself up and back onto the chair, grabbing her hair and going back to work. “Come on, let's get this done before your brother comes back. It’ll be a surprise.”

***

Parker stared at her reflection in the small handheld mirror in the RV and shook her head, before a huge grin broke out on her face. Lori had done a better job than she expected, cutting her hair short enough for it to barely graze her shoulders, but still managing to cut it evenly and frame her face nicely. She ruffled the top, watching the way her hair splayed out across her face and she giggled. She looked younger, fresher even, and felt better already. But now, she needed a shower. Seeing her hair greasy and her body covered in dirt was starting to get to her, so she hurried out of the RV to her own tent, grabbed some toiletries, and made her way to the farm house. Maggie had told them they could have showers every once in awhile, wanting to conserve the hot water, and since no one from their camp had taken one in a few days, Parker took the opportunity to have one herself.

She was walking up the dirt track to the front of the house when she spotted her brother sitting on the porch, strumming the guitar she had brought back from the highway. Glenn had missed music just as much as Parker had, and even though he wasn’t as gifted as her with the guitar, it was nice to hold an instrument again after all this time. She smiled at him and was raising her hand to wave when she saw Maggie appear from inside the house. Parker saw them talking to each other in hushed tones and she frowned, curiosity once again getting the best of her. She made sure she was out of sight before ducking down next to the porch, and craning her neck so she could hear what they were saying.

“Nice guitar.” She heard Maggie say and Glenn had obviously placed it down as she heard the sound of the guitar being propped up against the wooden railing of the porch.

“Park found it on the highway.” He said. Parker bit her lip as a silence fell over them, then she heard Glenn step forward. “You know we uh, we still have eleven condoms.” Parker’s eyes widened and she held back the urge to jump over the railing and smack her brother. Had he and Maggie...there was no way. She heard Maggie scoff quietly.

“Yeah, you see eleven condoms, I see eleven minutes of my life I’m never gettin’ back.” Parker threw a hand over her mouth, not sure whether she was going to call out or laugh. Maggie was braver than she thought.

Glenn shuffled above her. “It wasn’t that bad, was it?” He asked hesitantly.

“Look,” Maggie sighed, “I don’t even know if I like you.” Parker heard her brother step forward and there was a creak coming from the house; he must be leaning against it.

“But you’re thinking about it.” Glenn said, his voice softer this time, “You should.” Silence. Parker then backed away into a corner as Maggie jogged down the steps of the porch and towards the chicken coop, looking back at Glenn and shaking her head. After a few moments, Parker made herself known by trudging up the steps. “Gheez, Park!” Glenn hissed as she raised her eyebrow at him. “Were you standing there the whole time?” His eyes then widened as he took in her appearance. “When did you get a haircut?”

“That’s not important.” His sister snapped. “The hell are you doing?” Parker questioned, folding her arms. “Maggie? Seriously?”

“What’s wrong with her?” Glenn asked with a frown, clearly offended at her tone.

“It’s not her, it’s her Dad. He owns this place. You know, the place that keeps us safe? What if he found out!” Parker exclaimed but all Glenn did was shake his head and sit back down on the rocking chair he had been previously sitting in.

“He isn’t going to find out. Apparently it was a one time thing.” He said glumly, staring off after Maggie who was now collecting eggs for dinner. Parker walked over and smacked his head, causing him to yelp.

“And what if he does? One time thing or not, he’ll kick us out if he realises you’re banging his eldest daughter! We just got here!”

“You’re overreacting!” Glenn cried, rubbing his now throbbing head. “Just forget it, alright?”

“I can’t!” She threw her arms up in protest, almost dropping her shower supplies. “You have to be careful now, Glenn. If Hershel sees the way you’re looking at her he’ll pull a shotgun on you!” Glenn scoffed.

“Just because he’s a farmer doesn’t mean he owns a shotgun.”

“There’s one hanging in the dining room, asshole.” Parker snapped. “So keep it in your pants, got it? None of us wanna get kicked out just because you have a stupid crush.” Glenn’s jaw twitched and his nostrils flared.

“You know, just because you’re a few minutes older, doesn’t mean you can boss me around. We aren’t kids anymore, so grow the hell up.” Glenn said angrily, standing up and snatching the guitar, before storming off to his tent. Parker glared at his back before sighing and pushing open the farmhouse door. There was a part of her that wished she hadn’t yelled at him, but she knew she was right. Hershel was their host, screwing his daughter wasn’t exactly a good way of saying thank you for saving their lives.

“You okay?” Parker was at the foot of the staircase when a soft voice called to her. She turned to see Beth, the youngest of the Greene’s, standing in the kitchen watching her. “I heard you and your brother arguin’.”

Parker’s eyes widened. “Oh. How much did you hear?” Beth shrugged.

“Nothin’, it was all muffled. But you both sounded angry. You two gonna be okay?” Parker breathed out in relief and then stepped down from the staircase.

“Yeah, we’ll be fine. Twins always make up in the end.” She said with a shrug. Beth’s eyes lit up.

“You guys really are twins then? I figured but, I never asked. I’ve never met twins before.” Parker was fascinated by her innocence ever since she first met her. Beth had clearly not seen the reality of their new world, so it was obvious why she was so happy and smiling at everybody. She had nothing to be sad about. However, she had heard Hershel explain to Rick that she lost her brother and mother when it all started. So maybe she was trying to cover it up by busying herself with mundane tasks like laundry and cooking. She was basically a small, blonde version of Carol.

“Really? You never went to highschool with any twins?” Parker asked. Beth shook her head.

“No. My high school was small, not many people went.” Beth looked down at her hands and Parker realised she must be remembering what going to school was like. Seeing friends and teachers, eating lunch, gossiping, going to dances. Beth then looked up with a beaming smile, as if she was never even sad in the first place. “Did you need something?” Parker hesitated but then realised why she was in the house at all.

“I wanted to use the shower. Maggie said-”

“Go ahead. Nobody’s used it today so take as long as you need.” Beth said sweetly and Parker found herself smiling back at her. This girl was too nice for her own good. “There’s fresh towels hanging up on the rail next to the sink, and a hair dryer if you need it.”

“Thank you.” Parker said. “For everything. Your family have been too good to us.” Beth shrugged.

“We should all stick together now. It’s the least we can do.” Beth then started to head back into the kitchen before she spun around. “By the way, I really like your new hair.” Parker laughed, running her fingers through the ends. Still not being used to the way it cut off above her shoulders instead of halfway down her back. “It suits you.”

“Thanks, Beth.” Parker said sincerely, and Beth just nodded before walking into the kitchen and out of sight. Parker then licked her lips and practically jogged upstairs, wanting nothing more than to soak in the shower for as long as she could. The bathroom was the third door on the right, just past Maggie’s room, and Parker tapped on the door lightly, hoping that someone wasn’t already in there. When no one answered, just slowly pushed it open and let herself in. The bathroom was a light cream colour, with pink flowers painted onto the wallpaper that matched the light pink rug on the floor and the pink shower curtain. It was old fashioned, victorian even, and Parker had never seen a room look more inviting. She locked the door then peeled off her dirty clothes, putting them into a pile in the corner and then turning to look in the mirror. Her skin was still too pale, and her body too thin, but she felt better than ever.

The water came out as a thick stream into the bath and Parker allowed it to heat up for a minute as she took the time to take our her toiletries and place them on the rim of the tub. She had a small bottle of shampoo and conditioner; they didn’t match, but Parker couldn’t care less. The body wash she had was thankfully large so she could keep it for longer, and she even found a couple of razors when they were looking through the cars. She stepped into the shower, hissing at the hot water that licked at her skin, before grabbing a fresh flannel and soaking it. As she did so, she couldn’t help but step right under the shower; letting the water rain down on her and drench her entire body. It had been a long time since she had a proper shower, not since the CDC at least, and she had never been more grateful for one in her life. Especially after the last few stressful days.

There was still no sign of Sophia, but Daryl hadn’t given up hope. The others were in teams scouring the areas of the woods Rick had assigned for them, whilst Daryl took off on his own. Again. Parker didn’t try to protest this time. She knew that after their encounter in the abandoned house that Daryl preferred to be alone when tracking. She was just too stubborn to realise it. Now she would only offer help when he seemed desperate, and that morning he was perfectly fine to go out on his own without back up, so she never offered. Sadly, Daryl didn’t seem to have much of a reaction to her not going with him, making her chest ache. She didn’t know what it was that she felt for Daryl. They weren’t exactly friends, more like acquaintances, but she felt something else brewing inside her yet she had no idea what to do about it. Daryl wasn’t like any other guy she had met. He was awkward around her, or angry, and preferred his own company to other people’s. She was used to confidant Michigan guys who would hang around in groups and chat up women any chance they got. But Daryl? She could never see him chat a girl up, the very thought almost made her laugh.

Parker realised she was wasting precious time and quickly squirted some body wash onto the flannel, rubbing it over her dirty skin and watching in satisfaction as the muddy brown water that came off slowly started to seep away, leaving nothing but the fresh, clean smell of citrus. Once she was clean she started shampooing her freshly cut hair and smiled at how nice it felt to wash. It was easier and less time consuming, and she knew that would come in handy in the future. After scrubbing her scalp raw she washed the residue away and started on the conditioner, leaving it in for a few minutes as she picked up one of the razors. She ran a hand over her legs that now felt furry after weeks of not being able to shave, and she snorted. It was a wonder how she used to care about hairy legs before this, always wanting smooth skin wherever she went. Now, this was the new normal. But she decided to at least give herself some pampering, and shaved across her legs, her underarms, and between her thighs, feeling fresher and lighter than before. Once the conditioner was rinsed out Parker flipped the shower switch and got out of the tub, grabbing a towel and quickly drying herself. She froze, however, as a knock came from the other side of the door.

“Parker? It’s Carol!” Parker relaxed and wrapped the towel around herself before unlocking the door and opening it to see Carol standing with a bunch of neatly folded clothes in her arms. “Feeling better?” She asked.

“Much better.” Parker sighed, letting herself breath in the body wash that still strongly lingered on her skin. Carol grinned.

“Good. I washed your clothes this morning, so there’s some fresh jeans and underwear here too. I had to get a shirt of Glenn’s though. All the women’s shirts are still drying.” Parker shrugged and thanked her before grabbing the clothes.

“I’ve stolen my brother’s shirts enough times before for him to not even notice. Thank you.” Carol then walked back downstairs, and Parker was left to change. The shirt Carol had found was Glenn’s oversized University t-shirt that he got in his second year. It had ATLANTA STATE across the chest in white lettering, which stood out against the deep navy background, and it was the comfiest shirt Glenn owned. She threw on the underwear and the clothes before putting on her socks and boots, then grabbed her dirty clothes and toiletries and headed back down the stairs. The house was quiet, and Parker wondered if everyone was outside today, before she heard the stable doors being slammed shut. She wandered back to the camp, waving at Dale who was on lookout, then dumped her belongings in her tent. She then grabbed her hunting knife and strapped it to her thigh before making her way over to the stable where Hershel kept his four horses, wanting to see who was in there in the middle of the day.

Parker noticed someone moving inside and slid through the opening in the door, only to see  
Hershel inspecting one of the stables that was empty. “Everything alright in here?” She asked softly and the older man turned to her. He looked concerned and that made her heart beat faster. “Hershel, what's wrong?”

“Nelly, one of my horses, she’s gone. Did one of your people take her out this morning?” He asked, leaning his hand on the stable door. Parker frowned and tried to rack her brain, but she didn’t remember seeing anyone come in here.

“I don’t know, I’m sorry. Do you know how long she’s been gone?”

“Maybe a few hours.” He said. “But I need her back, she isn’t fit for the forest, especially if she’s with someone that doesn’t know how to take care of her. She’s called Nervous Nelly for a reason.” Parker nodded.

“I’ll go and look for her.” She said after a moment’s pause. Hershel’s glanced up at her and blinked. “It’s the least I can do, you’ve given us so much here already.”

“Are you sure that's a good idea?” Hershel asked. “It’ll be dark soon.” Parker nodded with as much confidence as she could muster.

“Yeah, of course. She couldn't have wandered too far away.”

***

Parker was grumbling to herself under her breath an hour and a half later, very much regretting her decision to try and be helpful. She had been blindly stumbling around the woods for too long without finding any sign of a horse, and she was starting to get tired, hungry, and antsy. But most of all, she was starting to get scared. She was a bad tracker, everyone knew that, and being out here along was bad enough...but on her own? That was a whole other story. But what kept her going was that she had somehow managed to find Daryl at the abandoned house the other day, so that had to have meant something. She could find a horse, surely.

The track she was walking down seemed to go on forever and Parker soon had to take a quick break before her ankles gave out. She leaned against a tree and stared up at the late afternoon sun shining down on her. She was barely standing there for a minute before she heard leaves rustling and branches snapping somewhere in the distance. Her head swivelled round before she caught sight of a walker tripping over some rocks from behind her. Parker gulped but grabbed her knife and made her way over to it. The walker snapped its decaying jaw the second it saw her and she winced at the deep growling sound that came from it’s throat. Parker stepped back as its arms lunged for her, then she reached over and grabbed it by the neck, turning her knife over in her hand to get a better grip, then plunged the blade deep into its eye socket. The walker stopped moving and collapsed at her feet, making her stumble backwards.

“Gross.” She whispered to herself as a questionable substance started to ooze from the creature’s bloody socket. She wiped her knife on some leaves, not wanting to dirty her fresh jeans, before putting it into its sheath and carrying on. She managed to find the edge of a small cliff and began to follow it, seeing a waterfall on the other side and assuming the horse may have gone there if it started to get thirsty. However, something else caught her eye as she looked down the cliff. A body was at the bottom, lying in the mud and not moving. It was a man, covered with dirt and blood, with an arrow sticking out just above his left hip. Since it wasn't moving, Parker first assumed it was dead, then she took in the familiar crossbow and checked shirt and she froze.

“Daryl!” Parker’s voice echoed throughout the canyon and she felt her throat close up as Daryl still didn’t move. “DARYL!” Nothing. “Shit, shit, shit, shit!” Parker quickly ran through the woods, trying to find a safe way down the cliff to where Daryl was lying, and eventually found a slope that wasn’t too steep. She carefully stepped down, gripping onto a nearby branch, and pulled herself down, holding onto the trees so she wouldn’t fall. She would glance at Daryl’s lifeless body every few seconds, hoping to god that he would start to move or at least make a sound to indicate to her that he was alive. Parker managed to slide down the last few meters of the cliff, skidding to a halt at the bottom and rolling onto the sandy floor that was attached to a large pool of water. She shook off the dirt and pushed her aching body forward, ignoring the burning in her lungs and the aches in her legs. She dropped to her knees at Daryl’s side and took his face in her hands. His eyes were slowly opening and closing and she sighed in relief. He was alive at least.

“Jesus, Daryl? Can you hear me?” She asked, gently slapping his cheek to try and wake him. There was a deep cut on his forehead and blood was pouring out of it, and she couldn’t even bring herself to look at the arrow stuck in his side. The blood covering his shirt was enough to let her know how bad it was. Suddenly, his mouth opened, and Parker waited for him to speak.

“I ain’t nobody’s bitch.” Daryl whispered. His voice was scratchy and hoarse, but Parker still heard him. And she frowned.

“Wait, what?” She didn’t have time to ask anything else as a growl erupted from behind her and she was pushed down to the dirt. She let out a scream as the walker snapped at her, reaching down with its long, dirty nails and practically foaming at the mouth. She tried to kick the walker away, but it seemed to have pinned her down, also meaning that she couldn’t reach her knife properly. She gripped the walker’s tattered shirt with one hand, pushing it as far away from her as she could, before trying to reach down and get the knife without losing her grip. The walker suddenly lunged and she felt her arm buckle under its weight and she screamed again, clamping her eyes shut, just as something whizzed through the air and the walker instantly stilled. Parker opened her eyes to come face to face with an arrow head and she breathed out at the realisation that the walker had stopped. She shoved it away from her and fell back against the ground, trying to calm her breathing.

“You alright?” She turned to see Daryl on his knees not too far away. He looked worse for wear, but he had still managed to load his crossbow and for that Parker saw him as her knight in shining armour, not a beaten and bruised red neck.

“Yeah.” She said shakily, propping herself up. “You?”

“Been better.” Daryl shrugged and carefully stood up, throwing his crossbow over his shoulder and stepping in front of the limp walker. He yanked the arrow from its skull and then offered his free hand down to her. Parker took it and let him haul her up. He winced but didn’t seem to falter under her weight, and then stuffed the arrow into his pocket. Then Parker noticed his hip.

“The arrow…” She said, but then saw how bloody the one in his pocket was. He had pulled an arrow out of his hip to save her life. “Jesus, shit! Are you sure you’re okay!?” She asked, reaching out to him. He pulled away with a grunt.

“M’fine.” He said, then looked up at the cliff. “It’ll bind better now anyway.” He said, rather bitterly to Parker’s surprise. He then glanced from the cliff above them back to her and frowned. "How’d you get down here?” He asked. “How’d you find me?”

“Hershel told me one of the horses went missing.” She said, straightening up and rubbing dirt off of her clothes, groaning at how grubby they already were. “So I offered to go find her, then I saw you down here and then he showed up.” She pointed at the walker and sneered at it. “What the hell happened to you anyway?”

“Out lookin’ for the girl. Horse reared up and-”

“You were the one that took Nelly?” Parker exclaimed and Daryl blinked. “Well, Hershel’s gonna be thrilled.” She said sarcastically. Daryl looked away, almost as if he was embarrassed, and Parker winced at her tone.

“Thought I’d cover more ground with the horse.” Daryl said slowly. “Somethin’ spooked it, threw me down here. Got an arrow in the side in the process.”

“Does it still hurt?” She asked, nodding at the wound. Daryl looked down and pulled at his shirt sleeves that he had tied around his waist to try and bandage up the hole. He flinched in pain but sighed once they were tight enough.

“Not really.” He said. Parker nodded and then looked back up at the ridge.

“Okay. We gotta get going. It’s going to get dark and being stuck out here is not on my list of things to do today.” She said. Daryl looked at her through his lashes, head still hung down.

“Did that list include finding me?” He asked bravely. Parker felt her cheeks burn and she cleared her throat.

“I didn’t think I’d need to find you. Or rescue you.” Daryl scoffed, the sudden tension between them disappearing almost instantly.

“I don’t need rescuin’.” He said.

“You can be macho later, okay? Once we’re back on the farm and away from this stinking pond.” Parker said sternly and that seemed to shut him up.

“Lead the way.” Daryl said, swinging his arm up at the cliff. Parker searched around the cliff until she saw a slope that led upwards, surrounded by thick trees and bushes.

“There. Come on.” She headed towards the slope, hearing Daryl limp behind her, and started to climb, reaching her hand down for him to take. Daryl stared at it, but when she raised her eyebrows in encouragement, he firmly took it and pulled himself up. It took them a long time, what with Daryl’s injured hip and Parker’s lack of strength and constant slipping, but soon enough, the pair were just a few meters away from the top of the ridge. Parker scrambled up, then rolled onto her back and let out a breath, before reaching over and lying on her stomach to hold out her hand to Daryl again.

“I can do it.” He said with a huff and started pulling his aching body up the hill, gripping a branch until his knuckles were white. Parker rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm, yanking him forward with full force. What she hadn’t anticipated was for him to fall directly on top of her. Daryl hissed in pain and Parker reached down at the same time as he did to put pressure on his wound. They both stared at it, before staring back at each other. Silence hit the two of them like a ton of bricks and Parker swallowed.

“Daryl?” She asked quietly. He grunted. “I, I can’t get up.” He paused then quickly shuffled off of her onto the floor, rolling up onto his feet and rubbing his nose with the back of his hand, clearing his throat and coughing. Parker wanted to say she didn’t notice the red tinting his cheeks, but she did, and she enjoyed every second of it.

***

“So where did you find the doll?” She asked as they neared the clearing that led to the farm, which they could see up in the distance. Daryl instinctively clutched the soggy and dirty toy doll, that once had red hair and a bright yellow dress, but was now grey and torn.

“Near the water. I guessed it was Sophia's and went for it.” He said, patting the doll and securing it to his belt. “Stopped the horse and grabbed it, got back up and that’s when the horse freaked out and threw me down again. All for a damn toy.” Parker couldn’t help but laugh and he frowned at her. “What’s so funny?” His tone was angry, but laced with curiosity.

“It’s just, I nearly got shot by a crossbow the other day, and came back with a flower. You got thrown down a cliff and came back with a toy.” Parker smiled, shaking her head. “We’re not very good hunters, are we?” Daryl snorted.

“S’pose not.” Parker looked at him, shocked that for once he didn’t argue with her. The two entered the clearing and blinked at the blinding sun that was slowly starting to set. Daryl was still limping and covered in dirt and blood, which Parker realised wasn’t the best way to return to camp. She however didn’t look that much better. Her clothes were sticky with mud and murky water and her hair was sticking to her jaw and forehead. She realised Daryl was staring at her head and she side eyed him.

“You alright there?” She asked teasingly and he looked away. “It’s the hair, isn’t it.” She smirked.

“It’s short.” Daryl said and Parker tried not to laugh.

“Yeah, it is. Lori cut it this morning.” Daryl nodded, rubbing at his face which hadn’t seemed to have gone back to normal from it’s pink flush just yet.

“It’s safer. Good call.” He said gruffly and Parker just remained silent, picking up the pace once the RV came into view. Andrea and Dale were sat on top, and she noticed them look their way. She waved her hand slightly, but got no response. “Parker?”

She whipped her head around, realising that Daryl had said something else to her and she coughed. “Sorry, what did you say?”

“I said, it suits you.” He mumbled and Parker blinked up at him. She felt her feet stop but Daryl kept on walking, until he realised she wasn’t at his side. “What?” He asked, looking round at her. Parker’s lips grew into the prettiest smile Daryl had ever seen and he suddenly felt dizzy.

“Thank you.” Parker practically whispered. She looked at her hands, that had started fiddling absentmindedly, then looked up at him. “Look, Daryl-” A shot from behind Daryl rang out and before Parker could blink she felt a stinging sensation in her ear and on the side of her head. Daryl stared in horror as Parker’s eyes rolled back and she collapsed at his feet. Shouts came from behind him but he didn’t listen, instead he crouched over her and shook her shoulders.

“Parker! Park!” He yelled, tapping her face like she had done to him not so long ago, but when he got no response his heart started racing. He suddenly felt something warm and wet drip onto his hand and he lifted it to see a small pool of blood was forming, and it was coming from Parker’s head. He heard her brother’s shouts and he turned to see Rick, Shane, T-Dog and Glenn sprinting towards them. Rick had turned and started frantically waving his arms at the RV, screaming “No, stop!” over and over again. Daryl looked back at Parker and nearly fainted when he saw that his left hand was now drenched in her blood. He felt adrenaline rush through his veins and he moved his arms so one was underneath the back of her knees and the other behind her shoulders, and he lifted her up to his chest just as Glenn arrived.

“Parker!” He was yelling, tears streaming down his face. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!” He nearly collapsed at the sight of his sister’s blood seeping onto Daryl’s shirt and he gripped her limp hand. “You’re gonna be alright, okay? I promise.” He said and he looked up at Daryl. “Let me take her, you’re hurt, I’m faster!”

“Just get Hershel, I got her.” Daryl instructed, hoisting her closer and taking off towards the farmhouse. Glenn, not being able to do much else but follow his orders, sprinted ahead, screaming Hershel’s name, all while repeating the same mantra in his head. Not her. Not her. Please God, not her.


	6. Wakey, Wakey

When he was younger, Glenn sometimes imagined what his life would be like without his older sister. He thought about how he wouldn’t have had a playmate until Middle School, purely because he was too shy to make any friends. Parker on the other hand, she was more than willing to thrust her hand out to strangers and smile that infamous ‘Parker Rhee’ smile, where her eyes would crinkle and her mouth would stretch out wide, showing off her perfect teeth.

She was always the confident one of the two, leading her little brother by the hand through the school halls and not letting go until they were in class, all because he used to be scared of crowds. She would check on him every night before bed, making sure he wasn’t worrying about any potential monsters hiding in the closet or under his bed, just because she wanted him to have a good night's rest. Parker Rhee was a saint in Glenn’s eyes, and now she lay on Hershel’s giant double bed, weak and unresponsive, with a hole in her ear and a bandage around her head, and she had never looked more peaceful.

That’s what scared Glenn the most, how content her face looked. Like she was just sleeping, but she wasn’t. Hershel said she would hopefully wake up soon, seeing as the bullet had just grazed the side of her head, but it was the shock that knocked her out. Glenn pushed his tired body forward in the arm chair he had dragged up here on the second night Parker didn’t wake up, and took her cool, smooth hand in his. He glanced at her new battle scar, the small, jagged hole in the top of her ear. The cartilage was damaged and there was no way of really fixing it, so Hershel and Patricia let it heal naturally. It wasn’t as if she had lost her ear, just a small chunk. Glenn was glad that was all she had lost.

Andrea, the trigger happy member of the group that she was, had assumed her and Daryl were walkers trying to make their way to the camp. So the second she saw them advancing on the farm, she did the only thing she could think of. Ignore everyone else, and shoot. Glenn had lost it the moment Parker was stable, screaming at Andrea and telling her to stay away from her when she tried to visit. Andrea had locked herself in the RV for days now, and everyone left her too it. It was better not to poke a sleeping bear. Lori and Carl, who had finally recovered completely from his bullet wound and was up and about doing chores, visited whenever they had a spare minute.

Carl looked up to Parker, almost like a sister, and had been whispering in her ear - the one without the creepy piece missing - that she needed to get up and help him with his daily chores, because the excuse “I got shot” wears off after a little while. He even left his Sheriff's hat on the bedside table for her, since his father had given it to him not long after he had woken up; telling him that since they’d now both been shot, he got to wear it too.

“We’ve all taken a bullet now, Parker.” Car said quietly, smiling slightly at how stupid that sounded. But nowadays, it was difficult to get a laugh in here and there. “So, you can have it for now. Welcome to the club.” Glenn almost broke down then and there. Besides Lori and Carl, Rick, Beth, Carol and even Maggie visited the Rhee’s, asking Glenn if he needed any water or food or if they could take over looking after her. He refused every time.

“She’s my sister,” He’d said over and over. “She’s my responsibility.” On the fourth night, the night she finally woke up, Glenn had fallen asleep whilst holding her hand. He was snoring in the armchair whilst Daryl stood silently in the doorway, leaning against the wooden frame and watching them both. He had been every night whenever Glenn either wasn’t around - which was practically never apart from using the bathroom - or had finally fallen asleep for a few minutes. Daryl didn’t want anyone to know he was up there with them, knowing he’d be questioned or told to leave. God forbid if Glenn suddenly woke up when he was standing there like a creep. But Daryl felt guilty, and he needed to check on Parker as much as he could to make sure she didn’t just...go.

He blamed Andrea shooting her on himself. If he hadn’t of taken that stupid horse without permission, which he was scolded for immensely by Hershel whilst getting his hip stitched up, then Parker would never have set foot in that woods. She would never have found him in the ditch, or nearly get attacked by a walker. If he hadn’t of been an idiot for once, maybe he would have been shot instead. And in some messed up way that Daryl couldn’t explain, he kind of wish he had been. Less people would have been worried, he thought.

Daryl sighed and instinctively reached up for his crossbow, only to remember he had left it in his tent, and grunted in disgust. He felt uncomfortable without it, missing the weight on his shoulders and the power it gave him. Right now, in Parker’s fake hospital wing, he was defenceless, raw, and without protection. He had opened himself up to her without realising, and he felt awkward just standing there. But he didn’t dare move. Instead, he stepped closer, wincing at the creaky floorboards under his boots, and walked over to her bedside. Parker breathed softly, her chest rising and falling every few seconds in gentle motions, and Daryl crouched next to her. His eyes flickered to her brother, who was still knocked out, and he licked his chapped lips.

“M’sorry.” He said hoarsely, clearing his throat and looking over his shoulder to make sure no one was hearing him. The last thing he wanted was for them to make fun of him, Daryl Dixon, for apologising for the first time in his 32 years of life. “For you gettin’ shot an’all.” He fidgeted, not sure what else to say, before he saw Glenn shift in his sleep. He got ready to jump up and leave without a moment’s hesitation, but Glenn didn’t wake up. He just rolled to the other side of the chair and curled into himself even more, hugging his knees to his chest and yawning. Daryl sighed again. “Look, just get better, alright? For him.” He nodded at her brother and then stood up. He looked at Parker’s pale, peaceful face, and his hand twitched. He wanted to touch her...but why?

His hand reached out without him thinking and gently took her left hand, curling his fingers around her own, and running a thumb over the back of her knuckles. He paused, and he stiffened as he heard her softly moan. Daryl blinked and leaned closer, as if the tiny noise hadn’t even happened, and he waited. Then it happened again.

“Glenn.” Daryl said, his voice stiff and unsure if this was the right thing to do. Glenn might be pissed he was here, but then again if his sister finally woke up maybe for now all would be forgiven. “Kid, get up!” Daryl looked back down at Parker again and crouched at her side, shuffling closer to her and stared at her, waiting for her to start moving. It was slow, but as each second ticked past, Parker finally seemed to wake up. Her eyes fluttered and she groaned slightly at the light coming from the lamp at her side. Daryl turned it off for her, causing a soft smile to form on her lips.

“Thanks, Dixon.” She whispered. Her voice was dry and quiet after not being used in days, but Daryl was just thankful she was still alive.

“How you feelin’?” He asked after a pause, wanting her to adjust to her surroundings. “Head hurt?”

“A little.” She nodded and winced at her temple throbbed. “What happened?” Daryl swallowed.

“Andrea...she thought we were walkers. Tried to shoot me but missed, got you right in the head, though. Took a tiny bit of your ear with it.” He realised he probably should have been more gentle about relaying that piece of information, but Parker merely snorted.

“I can still hear, so I’d say I’m doing okay.” She grinned and Daryl scoffed, but he wasn’t angry. In fact, he was trying to hide a smirk. Always the joker. Glenn shuffled in his chair and Parker turned her head gently, not wanting to move the bandage around too much, and reached up to squeeze his hand. As Glenn slowly came back to reality, Daryl took the hint and stood up, making his way to the door. But Parker grabbed his hand before he could even more away from the bed. “Stay.” She said, almost pleading with him. Daryl looked at her brother and shook his head before turning back to her.

“Nah, he’s been here the longest. He deserves time alone with you.” Daryl frowned at Parker’s reaction, noticing a flicker of sadness in her features, before she nodded.

“Thank you.” She said. “For coming to see me.” Daryl shrugged.

“S’nothin’.” He said and Parker chuckled before coughing slightly.

“And for carrying me up here. For not letting me go.” Daryl’s eyes widened a little and she smirked up at him as Glenn started to come too. “Yeah, I remember.” She teased. Daryl fled the room the second her brother opened his eyes, and Parker couldn’t help but smile a rather wicked smile, which thankfully Glenn never questioned when he saw her awake for the first time in four days, at the sight of a very flustered Daryl Dixon. Oh yeah, she definitely remembered.

***

Even though the house was completely silent, Parker knew everyone was having dinner together downstairs, and she felt a pang of sadness hit her like a ton of bricks. She wanted to be sat at the table with everyone else, eating Carol and Lori’s beautifully cooked roast chicken, having actual vegetables for the first time in months, maybe even a glass of wine. But due to her head she couldn’t do much without the room beginning to spin. It took a lot of persuading to make Glenn go downstairs and sit with the others instead of her, but she insisted she wanted to rest by herself for a little bit, and so he caved and sulked down the staircase, much to her amusement.

But after an hour or so, she regretted it. She wanted to talk to somebody, ask if Carl was doing okay, how Carol was holding up, if Andrea felt guilty for what had happened, if Dale was finished with her copy of Clockwork Orange yet. Anything. So when there was a gruff knock on the door, she sat up a little too eagerly. “Come in!” she called, cradling her throbbing head, and turned to see Daryl with a plate in his hand, blinking at her.

“You okay?” He asked, nodding at her head, and she shrugged.

“Stupid thing won’t let me sit up without reminding me I got shot.” She joked, but Daryl didn’t laugh. Instead, he held out the plate to her, along with some cutlery, and stepped back. The plate was piled high with potatoes and peas and carrots, as well as enough meat to feed an army, and Parker shook her head with a laugh. “Let me guess, my brother fixed this for me?”

“And Carol.” Daryl said, catching her attention. He was always so quiet, even in a practically empty room. “Said you’d be hungry so, she sent me up.” Lie, he thought to himself, I was kind of worried about you being alone so I gave any excuse I could to come up and see you. Parker nodded.

“Thanks. I’ll try and eat it all, but I can’t make any promises.” She said and Daryl just jerked his chin up as a response. He turned to leave when Parker cleared her throat. He stepped back and she pointed to the arm chair. “Come on, sit. I wanna talk to you.” Daryl frowned and she rolled her eyes. “Come on, I don’t bite.”

“You got a mouth on you though.” Daryl whispered and Parker tutted, but knew he was more than right about that. Daryl closed the door hesitantly, and moved over to the big arm chair, settling himself in and propping one leg up, resting his chin on his hand. They sat in silence for a short while and Parker took the opportunity to try some food, and that was when her stomach growled loudly, indicating to her that she was famished. Daryl watched as she started wolfing down the vegetables and tried to scoff some potatoes in her mouth at the same time, and he fought the urge to smile.

“It’s so good!” Parker moaned and stabbed a piece of chicken with her fork, bringing it to her lips and grinning. “I’ve missed roast chicken.”

“Squirrels better.” She tried not to jerk her head around too fast, but she was taken aback.

“It is not!” She protested. Daryl shrugged.

“Is when there ain’t nothin’ else to eat.” He pointed out and she shut up. Eventually, she put down her almost completely demolished dinner, and sat back. She let out a long sigh and snuggled under the warm comforter, turning on her side, giving her wound and ear some relief from the pillow, and stared at Daryl.

“How’s your hip?” She asked softly. He glanced at it and shrugged.

“Fine.” Parker raised an eyebrow and he scowled. “It is.”

“Liar.” She said and he scoffed. He had a habit of doing that. “When did Hershel stitch it?”

“After Glenn finally let him leave the room.” Daryl said, remembering the way Glenn refused to let Daryl get treated until his sister was alright. It would seem selfish to anyone else, but Daryl didn’t blame Glenn for doing what he did. He was scared, and any other scared person would have done the exact same thing. If not, something even worse. “Yelled at me for stealing the horse. I didn't steal no goddamn horse!”

“You didn’t exactly ask him, did you.” Parker said and Daryl looked away. She pursed her lips.  
“I wanted to thank you, for bringing me here and not leaving me. I appreciate it.”

“I didn’t-” Daryl tried to come up with something other than “I came up here every night to check on you” but no words left his lips. So he shut them. Parker giggled.

“Beth saw you, you’re not as sneaky as you look, you know. She told me you were always in here, checking up on me. That was sweet of you.” She grinned as he looked down, trying to hide his face. Then Parker frowned. “Daryl?” He didn’t answer. “Why don’t you accept compliments?”

“I do.” He muttered.

“No,” she said, sitting up and ignoring the dizzy spell that overtook her senses, “you don’t. Ever. I just, I don’t understand.”

“Ain’t used to ‘em, I guess.” He said quickly. Parker’s chest ached for him.

“Not even when you were growing up?” Daryl snorted at her and stared at her as if she just grew another head.

“Take one look at me,” he said gruffly, sweeping his hand over his dirty form, “and tell me I was complimented as a kid.”

“You should have been.” Parker said defiantly. “You’re smart. You’re an amazing tracker. You can hunt better than any of those assholes on TV. And you’re fair. You’re a real man, Daryl. You’re one of the good guys.” Daryl shook his head ever so slightly, and Parker almost missed it. But she saw it, and her heart broke. “You know, Carol said to me earlier today that you did more for Sophia than her Dad ever did in his whole life.” Daryl started playing with a loose strand of fabric from his work out checked shirt, not wanting to look up and meet Parker’s piercing eyes. “And that means something.”

“I-I didn’t do anything Rick or Shane wouldn’t have done.” He said softly. Parker smiled and bravely reached out to tilt his head up.

“That’s because you’re every bit as good as they are. Every bit.” Daryl felt his cheeks heat up as he realised how close the two of them were and he gulped down the ball of nerves that had clambered its way into his throat. Parker bit her lip, also realising their proximity, and met his eyes. Brown met blue, and it seemed like the rest of the world melted away. Parker leaned closer and closed her eyes and Daryl instantly flinched away from her, but she carefully placed her hand on his hip to steady him. Daryl’s eyes slammed shut and he waited, then felt lips press against his temple. At first he was confused, then shocked, then very uncomfortable, and lastly he was a bit sad that she had chosen to kiss him there. And that really made his head spin. Parker moved away from him and Daryl coughed, moving her hand from his side.

“Careful. I got stitches.” He grunted, and Parker sat back against her bed with a smug smile on her face, making Daryl want to fling himself out the window.

“Accept your compliments more and I might do that again.” She teased and Daryl stood up.

“Who says I want you to anyways?” He grumbled and wandered over to the window, needing some cool air on his burning hot face.

“You don’t fool me, Daryl Dixon.” Parker yawned, and finally let sleep overtake her body. “Have the rest of the dinner if you want.” She said, getting his attention. “Even if you don’t want it, stay, please? I don’t really wanna be alone.” She admitted.

“I’ll get Glenn.”

“Daryl.” She said impatiently before he could even move, not that he was really going to. “Just do as you’re told.” Daryl chewed the inside of his cheek but sighed loudly.

“Why are you women always so needy, huh?” He said, but got himself comfortable on the window ledge. Parker let out a laugh.

“Because you men are always off somewhere far away.” Daryl looked over at her, only to see her completely passed out. That night, he stayed in her room until the morning, scrounging on her left overs, and wondering why he still felt her plump lips on his temple hours later.

***  
Glenn had been jumpy all day, and it was starting to piss Parker off. She was up and about a few days later, much to her delight, and was helping Carl out with his chores per his request. She had returned his hat, too, and he was trying to balance it on his petite head as they carried chicken feed back to the coop to store it. Parker looked back over at the camp, where Glenn was now stood watching the barn with a pair of binoculars. She frowned.

“Is Glenn okay?” She found herself asking Carl, and he looked up at her with big blue eyes.

“Why wouldn’t he be?” He asked, then followed Parker’s eye line.

“He’s been watching it for nearly 45 minutes.” She muttered. Carl just shrugged. “Weird.”

Parker realised this strange behaviour had only started happening after the roast dinner the other night, and since she had been upstairs she couldn’t put her finger on why Glenn was twitchy all the time. She ran a hand through her short hair, and let her fingers tentatively run over the stitched up hole in her head, as well as the missing part of her ear. Everyone had assumed she’d freak out at the sight of it, Carl told her she looked she belonged in an indigenous tribe now, but if anything Parker saw her injury as a badge of pride.

She watched through narrowed eyes as Maggie came up to her brother and pushed the binoculars away with force, and she turned away. It wasn’t any of her business what the two of them did together, or spoke about. She still hadn’t really spoken to Glenn about their argument; he seemed to already have put it behind them. But she didn’t like leaving things open. She figured she’d give her brother a few more hours before bombarding him with questions, and turned back to Carl who was nearly done heaving the chicken feed into a wheelbarrow for safe keeping.

“How you holding up?” Parker asked, bumping her hip with his. He smiled up at her.

“I’m good. Shane’s doing gun training today, and I wanna go too.” Parker frowned.

“You sure? I mean you just got…” She trailed off but Carl knew what she was going to say.

“Parker, it’s okay.” He said calmly, and for some reason he suddenly sounded like an adult, not a small child. “I got shot, and it was bad. I get that. But I’m fine, really. I wanna know how to protect myself and everyone in camp. It’s the least I can do.”

“You’re still young, kid.” Parker pointed out, and took off his hat to ruffle his hair, making him yelp and shuffle away. She grinned. “You still got a lot of growing to do.”

“Shut up.” He huffed, but it was all in good fun. The two exited the chicken coop, Carl saying something about getting a walkie talkie from the RV, and Parker headed back to her tent. For now, all the chores had been done for the day, and if Carol needed extra help with drying the laundry, or if Andrea needed someone else to keep watch, she’d jump right to it. Her tent had been moved even closer to Glenn’s now, on his orders, so he wasn’t too far away in case something went wrong; Parker had yet to figure out what exactly could go wrong in her sleep. Once she was inside her tent, and had kicked off her boots and settled into her cot, she heard footsteps come up from outside.

“Parker? Can I come in?” Parker reached over and moved the tent flap to reveal Andrea, looking sheepish. There was a pause where neither women did anything, before Andrea held up a thick, tatty looking book. “I uh, I brought this for you. It’s not much but, I hope it would give you something entertaining to look at for a while.” Parker took the book from her hands and then nodded for Andrea to come inside. Parker leaned down in her cot and rested her slightly aching head against the pillow, flipping through the book and smirking.

“Aw, no pictures?” She asked sarcastically and Andrea smiled.

“How are you feeling?” She asked and Parker shrugged, reading the book’s blurb; something about a guy finding some magic stone or something.

“I’ve been better. You know, when I had most of my ear.” She hadn’t meant it in a rude way, but Andrea blushed deeply and Parker suddenly felt bad. “It’s cool though, I think I actually look pretty bad-ass.

“Look, I feel like shit for what I did.” Andrea interrupted all of a sudden. “I had no idea that was you and Daryl, god if I had known I would have never even pulled the trigger!” Andrea blurted out all at once, then looked down in shame. Parker put the book to one side and smiled at her warmly.

“Hey.” Andrea looked up through her blonde lashes, “You were protecting the group. You were thinking of them and instinct took over. We’re good.” Andrea smiled at her and Parker sniffed. “Now, if it’s alright with you, I was gonna take a nap.” Andrea paused but then hastily nodded.

“Of course. Rest easy, okay?” Parker watched her leave before she called out to her. Andrea stuck her head back into the tent and was met with Parker Rhee’s beautiful smile.

“But if you shoot me again, you better hope I’m actually dead.” She winked and Andrea laughed, then turned her head at something, before smirking.

“I’ll uh, leave you guys to it.” Parker frowned as Andrea walked away, only to be replaced by Daryl. He looked back at Andrea’s retreating form before stepping inside.

“What did she want?” He asked rather angrily, and Parker shrugged.

“She apologised.” She said and Daryl sneered.

“Good. Damn woman almost took your head off.” Parker snorted at him and he scowled.

“Oh don’t be so dramatic.” She huffed. “What do you want, anyway?”

“Nearly everyone’s going to gun trainin’.” He said and sat down in the small camp chair opposite the bed, leaning back and getting comfortable. The two had been spending a lot of time together since the accident, and everyone had noticed; everyone except for Glenn. Naive, clueless Glenn.

“Nearly everyone?”

“Dale and Short Round are stayin’.” Parker laughed. “Camp gets boring when it’s half empty.”

Parker smirked. “You wanna hang out with me, is that it?” Daryl blinked and scrunched his face up.

“Ain’t got nothin’ better to do.” He grunted. She rolled her eyes but started to settle down in her bunk. “What are you doing’?” Daryl asked in confusion.

“Napping.” She sighed, pulling her comforter over her. Daryl stared at her and she cocked her head to the side. “What?”

“Nothin’.” Daryl said, and shrugged back into the chair and crossing a leg over the other. Parker looked out of the tent at everyone as they packed up to head down to Shane’s makeshift shooting range near the woods, and glanced back at Daryl.

“Wake me when they’re back, yeah?” He didn’t respond so she curled up and closed her eyes, letting her body relax under the warmth of the blanket and drift off. Daryl watched her for a while before sighing and rubbing a hand over his face. He didn’t really know why he was spending every day with Parker. He took every chance he got to talk to her or even just sit and watch over her whilst she slept. Which sounded less creepy in his head. He scratched at his hip, the stitches starting to irritate him, before picking up the book she had left on the ground. He saw Andrea give it to her, and since he had nothing better to do, decided to try and read at least a little of it.

He was almost halfway through when he heard footsteps outside the tent. His head jerked up as Rick’s tent opposite them shifted and he stepped out. Daryl hadn’t even realised the others had returned, and looked at Parker’s watch that she kept on the floor next to her cot. It had been 3 hours already. He put the book down, keeping it open on the page he had stopped at, and was about to get up when he heard Lori’s rather worried voice from outside.

“Hershel expects us to leave?” Daryl’s ears perked up and he felt his body lean forward, hanging onto every word. “Does anybody else know?” Lori asked her husband.

“Not yet.” He replied. There was a pause before Lori spoke up again.

“Were you gonna tell me?” Daryl rolled his eyes. The married couple were always arguing recently, never being able to see eye to eye, and it was a complete mystery to Daryl how they had stayed together in the first place. But then again, the concept of love and marriage was a mystery to him anyway.

“Of course-”

“When?!” Lori hissed, cutting Rick off. “How long have you known?”

“Not long. You don’t need to worry about this.”

“How do you expect me not to worry? We have shelter here, and food and water! Medical care!”

“I’m talking with Hershel.” Daryl recognised the desperate tone in Rick’s voice, and he knew he was trying not to get angry. That’s what Rick did best, stay calm. No matter the situation, he kept a level head. And that’s what Daryl respected about him, even if they didn’t always agree on things. “It’s not carved in stone.” He tried to reason with Lori but she was having none of it.

“He thinks it is.” Daryl rested his face on his palm and let out a sigh. If the group was kicked out, they’d be vulnerable again. Surviving on the road had only gotten them so far, and they still had to find Sophia. There was no way Daryl was leaving without her, and he knew Parker, Carl and Rick all felt the same. “We have to fix this.” Lori said firmly. “People are settling in here, they’ll be devastated!”

“I know!” Rick hissed. “I’m workin’ on it!”

“Well maybe I can talk to him too! Plead our case?”

“No, things are already uneasy. Look the best we can do now is to give Hershel some space.” Rick said, and Daryl saw his arm point over to the house. He glanced over at Parker, who had rolled over a while ago so her back was facing him, and bit down hard on his lip. He hoped she was still fast asleep. Another long pause made Daryl’s eyes wander back to the couple outside. “Don’t look at me like that.” Rick said sharply.

“Like what?” Lori asked, her voice tired and defeated.

“Like you’re scared. Like you don’t trust me! I can take it from everyone else, but not from you!”

“I don’t understand how you can keep something like this from me!” She argued. “Carl is barely on his feet, Sophia’s missing, Daryl, T-Dog and Parker are hurt! How can we leave?!” Daryl winced at the sound of his name and reached down to prod at his hip. Once he felt the sting run through his body he felt weak, and he hated that feeling. He wanted to go out again, to hunt or to search for the girl. Anything to prove to the others, and mostly himself, that he wasn’t useless right now. That’s the last thing he wanted to be.

“If we have to go,” Rick cut her off, “I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure you and Carl are okay. We will get by! We will.” Daryl stiffened as Parker shuffled in her cot. Unfortunately for him, he had been wrong. She had been awake the entire time, and was holding back tears. They couldn’t leave, not now. Not ever. She knew it was selfish to think like that, hoping that Hershel would just let them all live together, but the thought of going back out there...losing more people...it made her want to be sick. She couldn’t risk Carl getting lost or Glenn getting hurt, or the group splitting up. This was her family now, and she wasn’t going to let them be thrown out into the cold.

 

***

It was quiet the next morning, and as Parker sat at the fire with Daryl on her left side and T-Dog on her right, she wondered how the group had gotten to this point. Tensions seemed to be running high and she had no idea what had happened. Shane and Andrea were acting strangely, Glenn had still been jumpy and stammering his words whenever she tried to talk to him, and Rick was fuming with rage every time she caught a glimpse of his stone cold face.

Lori hadn’t uttered a word to anyone all night, and now they were all sat eating breakfast in silence, and Parker just wanted to get up and leave. She looked over at the farm house, and wondered if the Greene’s breakfast was any happier. Sitting in a warm, beautiful dining room with photographs of past lives surrounding them, bacon in their bellies and lighthearted chatter filling the room. Even if that wasn’t the case, it had to have been better than the dismal silence she was surrounded by.

Glenn was on the edge of the camp, and staring at the farm house as well. Except, he was looking straight at Maggie, who slowly shook her head, knowing what he was about to do. Parker watched with a frown as her brother stood up and stepped over to the rest of them, shoving his hands into the pockets of his worn out jeans. She had stolen his baseball cap that morning, wanting to keep the sun off of her stitched up head, and tugged on it when he walked up. She mouthed “Are you alright?” at him, not wanting to draw attention his way, and he gulped. That was a big no.

“Um, guys?” Everyone looked up from what they were doing and Glenn rubbed a shaking hand over his chin. Parker stared at her brother, and for a while he stared back, before clearing his throat. “So…” His voice cracked slightly and he winced. “The barn’s full of walkers.” Parker nearly dropped her plate of eggs. Daryl sat forward, and without realising, leaned closer to Parker. Rick then slowly turned around to stare at the barn, and everyone saw the colour drain from his face.

After a long pause, Shane threw down his plate and marched over to the barn, the others trailing after him. Rick even got his gun out of the RV, shoving it into the holster on his belt, and stormed up to the door. They crowded round, Parker sticking close to Glenn with Carol at her side, and they watched as Shane peered through one of the slats in the wood, looking around. His breath hitched and Parker felt her stomach drop as moans and gurgles came from inside.  
“Oh my god.” She breathed and Glenn held her hand. “How many are in there?”

“Too many.” Shane huffed, and suddenly jumped back as one snarled at him, banging on the door. Everybody took a few paces back, scared that they would break down the door, before Shane made his way over to Rick. “You cannot tell me you’re alright with this.” He growled.

“No, I’m not.” Rick said, equally as angry. “But we’re guests here, this isn’t our land.” That seemed to set Shane off.

“My god, this is our lives, man!” Shane cried and Parker flinched as he threw his arm up, almost hitting her.

“Lower your voice!” Lori begged whilst Andrea shook her head, pointing at the barn with disgust.

“We can’t just sweep this under the rug!” She said and Parker agreed with her.

“It ain’t right.” T-Dog said, folding his arms.

“Why the hell are they even in there?” Parker found herself saying out loud. Daryl stepped up to her other side and sniffed.

“These people have a death wish.” He muttered and Carol almost whimpered as the barn doors shuddered under the weight of a walker on the other side.

“We either gotta go in there,” Shane said, pacing around the group. “We gotta make things right, or we just gotta go. We’ve been talkin’ about Fort Benning for a long time now-”

“We can’t go!” Rick suddenly snapped, making Parker jump. His voice had never sounded so dominant, so angry, and she reeled back as if his words slapped her in the face.

“Why Rick, why?” Shane asked with a raised eyebrow. That’s when Carol stepped forward and away from Parker and Glenn.

“Because my daughter is still out there.” She said. Shane scoffed, but then ran a hand over his mouth before walking over to her with stiff shoulders.

“Okay, I think it’s time that we all just...consider the other possibility.”

“Shane!” Daryl protested, and Parker only just realised how close he was to her as she felt the muscles in his arm tense up.

“We can’t just leave Sophia behind!” Parker snapped. Glenn gripped her forearm to steady her as her anger started to rise up and boil inside her throat.

“I’m close to findin’ this girl!” Daryl said, “I just found her damn doll a few days ago!”

“You found her doll Daryl, that’s what you did. You found a doll!” Shane’s tone was condescending and it was clear to everyone that he was just mocking Daryl. Parker surged forward.

“At least he’s out there doing something! What the hell have you done anyway?!” She shouted and Daryl’s eyebrows creased, feeling pride rush through him. Shane puffed out his chest and stood his ground, staring down at the smaller girl.

"I’m just tellin’ y’all how it is.”

“You don’t know what the hell you’re talkin’ about!” Daryl yelled, getting in Shane’s face. Rick calmly put his hand up in front of Daryl, stopping him from getting any closer, whilst glaring at Shane.

“Look man, I’m just sayin’ what needs to be said!” Shane spat. “Now you got a good lead in the first forty-eight hours, but after that-” Rick walked up to his old partner and tried to calm him, his voice getting louder as Shane only got more angry. That only fuelled Daryl and Parker even more and Glenn had to hold onto his sister’s shoulders to steady her. “And let me tell you somethin’ else man, if she was alive out there, saw your redneck ass comin’, all methed out covered in blood, she would run in the other direction!” Daryl snapped and ran forward, throwing his arms out and trying to knock Shane on his ass. Parker felt her body jolt forward as Shane retaliated, ignoring Risk’s protests and cries and arms against his chest, throwing punches at Daryl himself.

“Stop it!” She screamed, running at Shane and shoving him back with all her strength, standing in front of Daryl as if she had any chance of shielding him. Glenn and Rick yelled at the two men to calm down, neither wanting Parker to get hurt in the midst of their thoughtless anger Daryl seemed to stop once he saw the girl protect him. His chest rose and fell with every deep breath he took and he made sure to keep a cold glare on Shane. Eventually, everyone was in the middle of the fight and Shane had to back off, being completely outnumbered.

“Back off!” Parker yelled at him, almost growling as he tried to take another step towards Daryl. Shane pushed Lori’s hand away, as it had found itself pushing against his shoulder, and shook his head.

“Get your hands off me.” He hissed, and pushed through the group to leave, but Rick’s voice stopped him.

“Now, just let me talk to Hershel!” He called out. “Let me figure somethin’ out!”

“And what are you gonna figure out?!” Shane hollered, rushing forward only to be once again stopped by Lori, who was pleading with him to calm dwn.

“If we’re gonna stay, if we’re gonna clear this barn, then I have to talk him into it! This is his land!” Rick explained. Parker felt her breath not yet willing to steady and she was panting loudly. She then felt a hand on her arm and flinched, only to turn and see Carol, who was tugging at her to step away. Parker shook her head and looked over her shoulder at Daryl. He was staring right at her and for a while, neither looked away.

“Hershel sees those things in there as people!” Dale chimed in and everyone turned to stare at him in shock. “Sick people. His wife, his step-son!”

“You knew?” Rick asked.

“Yesterday I talked to Hershel.” He explained calmly, not wanting another screaming match to break out.

“And you waited the night?” Shane spat.

“I thought we could survive one more night!” Dale’s voice suddenly raised, no longer wanting to listen to Shane’s aggravating tone. “We did! I was waiting until this morning to say something, but Glenn wanted to be the one.” Parker looked over at her brother who had his arms folded against his chest and his dark eyes burning holes into Shane's head. He nearly hurt his sister.

“This is crazy, Rick.” Shane said, stomping over to him. “If Hershel thinks those things are alive-” His voice started to get louder and as it did, the barn doors banged from behind them. Parker reached back for Daryl and grabbed his arm, pushing her body in front of his, just as the walkers inside the wooden barn starting clawing and growling, making the group step back in fear. Glenn grabbed his sister and dragged her back to camp, not realising she looked over her shoulder at Daryl, who once again met her eyes straight away. Glenn pulled her towards their tents before finally letting go.

“Glenn-”

“Just, stop it.” He snapped, making her reel back. “I’m going to feed the chickens. Don’t you dare go near that barn.” And with that, he walked off as if nothing had happened. Parker blinked at him before angrily kicking over one of the deck chairs around the fire. They were screwed, she thought. Those walkers could get out any second if they tried hard enough. But even if they didn’t, the danger of someone getting hurt was still there. She collapsed onto the ground and put her head in her hands, letting tears roll down her cheeks. She thought they had something good here...so why did it have to turn bad? The thing that made her cry the most however wasn’t the walkers. Or the thought of leaving. It was that Daryl almost got hurt, and that scared her more than anything.


	7. Shielded

“Need any help?” Parker asked as she stepped into the kitchen, seeing Maggie using the chopping board on the centre table. She turned and smiled at her but shook her head.

“No, thank you.”

“There’s gotta be something I can do.” Parker insisted, leaning against the door frame. “Glenn’s locked me in my tent for hours and I need to do something other than stare at the ceiling before I go crazy.” She joked and Maggie smiled at the mention of Glenn’s name.

“Okay. You can chop these carrots, but that’s all you’re doin’.” Maggie ordered and Parker saluted her in response, grabbing a knife and taking up the other end of the chopping board, lining the carrot up with the blade and slicing it down as neat as she could. Maggie seemed like a perfectionist in the kitchen, Beth and Hershel too, so Parker tried to follow their lead. For a few minutes, neither woman spoke to one another, just enjoyed the comfortable silence. But the elephant in the room was too big to ignore, and soon Parker felt her eyes gaze up at Maggie, and she tilted her head before looking back at the vegetables. “Seen Glenn yet?”

Maggie stiffened, and her knife ceased its movement. Maggie couldn’t look at her. “Yes.” She said quietly, changing her mind about the parsnips and beginning to peel some potatoes. Parker nodded.

“Did you talk to him? About what happened at the barn today?” She asked.

“Honestly? He did most of the talkin’.” Maggie admitted. “I just...got mad.” Parker bit her lip and moved the first chopped pieces of carrot to the side before grabbing another.

“You know, he didn’t tell us because he had to.” Maggie didn’t respond. “He told us because he wanted to, otherwise we would have found out some other way and it could have been a lot worse if we did.”

“You might never have seen them at all if it wasn’t for him!” Maggie blurted out, catching Parker off guard. She sighed, letting her shoulders sag and her short brown hair fell like a curtain across her face. “If...if he hadn’t have told me to meet me there after dinner...when we took your people in, my Daddy told me to never let you know what we kept in there. He’s a secretive man, he doesn’t like other people knowin’ his business.”

“Then why take us in at all?” Parker asked, setting the knife down and facing Maggie properly. “Hershel could have easily turned Rick away when he brought Carl to the farm.”

“That’s the thing.” Maggie said sadly, meeting Parker’s eyes. “He couldn’t turn away a dying child, no matter the situation. He would have still fought to keep him alive no matter what, and he did. Just like how he stitched up your head and Daryl’s hip. That man stole a horse from us and Dad still let him sleep in his bed that night!” Maggie laughed humorlessly, rubbing at her eyes tiredly. Parker didn’t know what to say. Maggie hadn’t really spoken to her properly before, and hearing her inner thoughts was almost too much. “My Daddy is a good man.” She said firmly. “But...the barn. He doesn’t understand.”

“What are you talking about?” Parker asked with a deep set frown. Maggie almost bit her tongue, but couldn’t go back now. “I thought…”

“At first I thought it might work.” Maggie said, remembering the start of all of this, when she lost Shaun and her step-mom. How Beth lost it, how Hershel lost it. “For a while, we took any walkers in that we recognised. Neighbours, friends. Even people that we saw working in the village. It was like he was tryin’ to save ‘em. But, he can’t. He never could.”

“What changed your mind?” Parker asked. Maggie looked up at her and sniffed, tears pooling in her eyes.

“Glenn and I went on a run the other day. Lori asked us to get-” She cut herself off then cleared her throat. “Some stuff for her. There was a walker in the back, neither of us saw it, and it got too close.”

“Oh my god,” Parker murmured, “Are you-”

“It was a close call.” Maggie said sternly, shaking her head and turning back to the potatoes. “But I know now what those things can do. How dangerous they are.” Parker hesitated before reaching over and taking Maggie’s hand that was shaking slightly as she held the potato peeler, and earned herself a confused look. Parker smiled at her.

“My brother has never really had much of a love life, I’ll be honest with you.” Maggie felt heat rise to her cheeks. “But, the way he looks at you cancels that out. Anything he had before with someone else, it’s nothing compared to you. And I know that sounds crazy and I don’t want to scare you off but...please don’t give up on him.” Parker rubbed a thumb over Maggie’s knuckles before taking the chopped up carrots and placing them in a large white bowl on Maggie’s left side. “Because believe me when I say that he’ll never give up on you.” Maggie watched with a slack jaw as Parker then shoved her hands in her pockets, just like her brother did whenever he was nervous, and walked right back out of the kitchen. She didn’t get very far before she heard someone coming down the stairs, and Parker slid out of view just as Hershel walked into the kitchen.

“Hi honey.” He greeted his eldest daughter, but she didn’t respond, just carried on peeling the vegetables with a blank expression. “Carl doesn’t need anymore of my help.” Parker paused as she was about to grab the door handle and turned her head, curiosity getting the better of her.

“So that’s it?” Maggie asked with a mono tonal voice. Parker felt her feet surge forward so she was in the hallway next to the arch that led into the kitchen from the dining room, and pressed her back against the wallpaper so neither of the others could see her.

“Rick tried to plead his case.” Hershel said, sitting down at the table. “It’ll be hard, they’ll have to be careful, but he was being dramatic.” Parker bit the inside of her cheek, wanting to walk around the corner and tell Hershel exactly what was out there. The horror they had all seen, what had taken some of their people. Their families. But she didn’t dare. “They’re a strong group.” Hershel continued. “They’ve done well on their own, they’re just going to have to go out there and find their own farm. There’s plenty of them out there to chose from.”

“There aren’t.” Maggie replied. “Every one of them nearby is burnt down or full of walkers.” Parker heard Hershel stiffen in his creaky chair at the word walkers. She knew Maggie had never used that term before, especially in front of her father, and she felt a sense of relief flood her. She really did mean it when she said she understood the danger now.

“Walkers?” Hershel asked, resting a hand on his hip, and stared at his daughter. He scoffed. “So we just keep these people here forever? How are they my responsibility?” He asked and there was a pause, during which Parker held her breath.

“The new command I give to you.” Maggie eventually said. “Love one another as I have loved you.” Parker frowned. She had never read a bible passage in her life, but she had recognised that one. It was something her mother used to say sometimes, whenever the twins were fighting or acting up at home. She told them that you had to love others despite their flaws, otherwise the world would be an ugly place to live in. And now she realised the truth behind her words. “S’what you told me, right?” Maggie asked. “I was mad about Mom. Mad about you marryin’ Annette. I was fourteen years old and I was awful; to you more than anybody. All I wanted to do was smoke and shop lift.” Parker froze. She had always assumed both Greene girls were just innocent and pure farm girls, but now, once again, she realised the truth. Maggie was stronger and a lot more fierce than she first assumed, and she wished she could go in there and tell her that. Tell her to keep that fire up and never let it burn out, because she knew it would save her ass one day.

“Love one another, that’s what you told me.” Maggie concluded.

“Maggie.” Hershel sighed. “I was different then.”

“No. You are different.”

“I am.” Hershel nodded. “But we’re not. I love you. That’s part of this.” Hershel hesitated before shaking his head. “Is this about you and the Asian boy?” Parker stiffened and felt her teeth grind with annoyance, wishing Hershel could just remember Glenn’s name for once. “Do you want-”

“No!” Maggie’s voice cracked as she set down the potato peeler, staring at her father was tear filled eyes. She took a long breath. “His name is Glenn. And he saved my life the other day when one of the people you think is sick tried to kill me. How’s that for dramatic?” Parker couldn’t see, but it was obvious Hershel was taken aback as he didn’t say anything. “Things aren’t what you think they are, they aren’t! The first thing they did when they thought Daryl and Parker were walkers was shoot at them, not take them into a barn and keep them locked up, feeding them chickens every night! Because it’s not safe!” She tried to reason with him. “So don’t do this!” Parker held her breath and dug her nails into her palms, ignoring the stinging pain that shot through them. “It’s not about me and Glenn, it’s not about me and you! It’s about you! It’s about who you are, who you’re gonna be.” There was barely a second of silence before the front door burst open and Parker rushed off to the side, hiding behind the stairs, just as Jimmy ran in. He was covered in sweat and panting as he hurried into the kitchen.

“Hershel! It happened again!” He breathed out and Parker frowned, but kept her head down as Hershel and Jimmy both made their way out the door, leaving Maggie on her own again. Parker stayed there for another minute, wanting to make sure that both men were away from the house outside, before sneaking out through the front door and hopping down off the porch. She ran both hands through her hair and let out a long breath, licking her drying lips and scanning the camp. Everyone seemed to be doing what they always did, except now they were looking over their shoulders at the barn every so often. She hated that, the feeling of fear they all had that something was about to go wrong. It was in her gut and she could feel it twisting and turning, but she didn’t know what to think. So she walked over to the barn to see the horses, knowing that being near the farm animals seemed to calm her down, even for a few minutes.

But her trip was cut short by Carol calling her name not too far away. Parker turned to see the older lady walking up to her with a sad smile and Parker jogged up to her. “Everything okay?” She asked and Carol shrugged.

“Daryl wants us, says its important.” Parker’s face creased up in confusion.

“Daryl?” She asked. “What-”

“Come on.” Carol gently took her hand and led her over to a small grassy path that led around the edge of the woods closest to the farm house, right behind the barn. “We had a fight earlier.” Carol explained after a while of walking and Parker snapped her head towards her.

“A fight?” She asked, her voice laced with worry. “What kind of fight?”

“It was more of a squabble.” Carol shook her head with a laugh, but Parker didn’t seem to calm down.

“Did he say something to you?”

“Called me a bitch, but he had every right too.”

“Carol-”

“I told him we might not find Sophia. That...that even I didn’t know if we were going to find her. I guess it sounded like I was giving up, and maybe I was but...he looked so hurt. I’ve never seen him like that before. I feel awful, Parker.” Carol hung her head, and Parker assumed she had done the same action multiple times with her husband, Ed. “Which is why I’m wondering why he’d bother to see me. You I get, he likes you. More than any of us at least.” Parker blushed.

“I suppose.” Parker wondered if Carol was just leading her blindly through the woods before finally seeing Daryl leaning against a tree, sharpening his hunting knife.

“There had better be a good reason for dragging us down here.” Parker said, catching his attention. He sheathed his knife and nodded his head for the women to follow him.

“Come on.” Daryl led them through the woods, both women not speaking or asking where they were going, before he brought them to a small pond surrounded by large weeds and flowers.

“You see that?” Parker and Carol looked around but neither could tell what he was talking about.

“See what?” Carol asked, stepping over a fallen branch from a nearby oak tree. Then Parker saw the white flowers and she felt her stomach flip. Cherokee Rose’s, and a whole bunch of them. They were blooming in the sunlight near the water, just like she had found one a few weeks back. She smiled and walked over to it, bending down to stroke the petals.

“How did you…” She said breathlessly, staring up at Daryl through narrowed eyes as the sun beat down on her.

“You were right, about the rose being a sign.” He said softly, looking over at Carol. “We’re gon’ find her.” He said, his gruff voice speaking volumes to both of them. No one said anything for a few moments before Parker heard Daryl shift on his feet. “Look uh, sorry ‘bout what happened this mornin’.” Parker glanced up at Carol who was smiling at Daryl.

“You wanted to look for her.” She said quietly. “Why?” Parker blinked, looking down at the rose and gently picking one off of its stem. “This whole time I just...I wanted to ask you.” Parker had been wondering the exact same thing. Daryl had nothing to gain from searching for Sophia, if anything he seemed to lose more than he took back. He could have died the last time he went outside the farm looking for her.

“Cos I think she’s still out there.” Daryl said with a nod of his head, and Parker felt the corner of her lips tug up in a tiny smile. There was a small part of him that cared, she knew that know more than ever after everything he had done for her these past few days. “Truth is...what else I got to do?” Parker stood up, holding the flower close to her chest, and took a few steps back so she was aligned with Daryl. Carol looked at them both before reaching forward and running her fingers over one of the flowers herself and smiled at it fondly.

“We’ll find her.” She said and Parker’s head tilted up in surprise. “We will. I see it.” She smiled and tucked the rose behind her ear, letting some of her hair cover the stem and keeping it in place. Carol then slowly moved backwards away from the flowers and back up the path towards the farm, leaving Daryl and Parker alone. Seconds ticked by before Parker started following her, turning back to the lonely Dixon before chuckling.

“Come on, you big softie. Let’s get lunch.” Daryl scoffed.

“I ain’t no softie.” But he trudged after her anyway.

***

Everyone seemed to be crowded round the porch by the time Daryl, Parker and Carol got back. Carl was sat on one of the chairs at the little rickety table playing chess with Beth and Patricia, whilst Maggie and Glenn sat on the steps staring at each other with so much fondness in their eyes it made Parker smirk. She knew they would be alright. T-Dog and Andrea were making their way towards them and they both looked rather concerned.

“You know what’s going on?” T-Dog asked as they approached Glenn who had stepped away from the porch.

“Where is everyone?” Andrea joined in, looking around the small group.

“You haven’t seen Rick?” Glenn asked and they shook their heads.

“He went off with Hershel, we were supposed to leave a couple hours ago.” Andrea explained.

“Yeah you were, what the hell?” Daryl piped up as soon as he got close enough, Parker right by his side and Carol not too far ahead.

“Rick told us he was going out.” Carol said. That seemed to set Daryl off and he practically growled.

“Dammit! Isn’t anyone takin’ this seriously?” He asked them all, but no one answered. “We got us a damn trail!” He threw his arm up towards the woods, then saw Shane stalking over to them all, the huge bag of guns Rick took from Atlanta over his shoulder. Parker had never seen him look so pissed and she felt the hairs on her arm stand on edge. “Here we go.” Daryl said, as if he was actually happy to see Shane. “What’s all this?” He asked, pointing at the guns, and Shane grunted.

“You with me man?” He asked, handing Daryl a shotgun. He grabbed it and cocked it, holding it over his shoulder as he followed Shane to the others.

“Daryl?” Parker stared at him with a worried expression but he didn’t take any notice. Parker then retreated to her brother and Maggie, who was looking ready to defend her house against the fuming Shane in any moment. Her shoulders were stiff and she had her arms folded over her chest in defiance as Shane looked over his shoulder at Andrea. “It’s time to grow up. You got yours?” Andrea nodded and grabbed her handgun, though she herself looked confused as well.

“Yeah,” She said, “where’s Dale?”

“He’s on his way.” Shane said rather bitterly. Shane handed a smaller gun to T-Dog, who frowned but took it anyway.

“Thought we weren’t allowed to carry?” He asked, looking around at everyone. Shane shrugged.

“Well we can, and we have to. Now look, it was one thing sitting around and picking daisies when we thought this place was supposed to be safe!” He said loudly so everyone could hear. Carl, Beth and Patricia stood up from their seats and stood at the top of the porch in shock, not knowing what to say or do. “But now we know it ain’t.” Parker then took a look at all the guns, then glanced over at the barn, and her eyes widened.

“Shane, please don’t.” She practically begged, stepping forward. “This doesn’t need to happen like this!” Shane glared at her, then looked over her shoulder.

“How about you, man?” He barked, marching over to Glenn and handing him a shotgun. “You wanna protect yours?” Glenn froze and looked at Maggie and Parker with scared eyes before reluctantly taking the gun and looking away, ashamed to be following Shane’s orders. Parker shook her head and put her hands on her hips.

“Hershel’s gonna be furious, Shane. You need to think this through!”

“I have!” He hollered, getting in her face. Daryl’s back straightened on instinct and Glenn’s face twitched. “We need to protect ourselves, what don't you understand about that?”

“It’s not your decision to make!” Parker argued, refusing to back down. “It isn’t your farm!”

“Parker, this is happening.” Shane said sternly then turned to Maggie. “Can you shoot?”

“Can you stop?” She bit back, scowling at him. “Parker’s right. You do this, you hand out these guns, my Dad will make you leave tonight!”

“We have to stay Shane!” Carl protested, rushing down the steps to Parker’s side. She reached for his hand and he gladly took it. Parker heard footsteps from the back of the house and turned her head to see Lori walk out, staring at Shane as if had gone mad. Which at that point wasn’t too illogical to consider.

“What’s going on?” She demanded but Shane was in his own little world, focusing purely on Carl.

“We ain’t going anywhere, okay?” He said, trying to be reassuring. “Now look. Hershel...he’s just gotta understand, okay? He...well he’s gonna have too.” Shane then grabbed his handgun from his holster and walked over to Carl and crouched in front of him. “Now we need to find Sophia, am I right?” Parker then watched in horror as Shane thrust the gun into Carl’s free hand, wrapping his tiny fingers around the handle for him. “Listen, I want you to take this, okay? You take it Carl and you keep your mother safe.” Parker was about to yank the gun from Carl’s hand but Lori beat her to it, standing in front of her son and glaring down at Shane with fire filled eyes.

“Rick said no guns!” She hissed. “This is not your call! This is not your decision to make!”

“Oh shit!” T-Dog blurted out and everyone swivelled round to see him staring off at the edge of the woods near the barn. Parker heard herself gasp as Rick, Jimmy and Hershel all stumbled out the woods...holding walkers by the necks at arms length with poles. She felt the air leave her lungs and she stumbled slightly, thankful that Carl was big enough to steady her at the last second. Jimmy was baiting the two walkers to follow him and they were all making their way towards the barn.

“The hell is that...what the HELL is that?!” Shane cried, grabbing his gun from Lori’s hand. Parker could feel the anger radiating off of him and she watched in despair as he hurtled towards Rick, yelling his name in disgust. Daryl took off after him, with Andrea and T-Dog not far behind. Parker let Lori take Carl and she sprinted after them all, ignoring the throbbing in her head every time her feet hit the dirt, determined to try and stop what Shane wanted to do. Stop him from ruining everything they had created. Maggie suddenly ran ahead of her, Glenn hot on her heels, calling out for Shane to stop, and staring at her Dad in fear. They were never supposed to see this, she thought to herself, they were never supposed to see this!

“What the hell are you doing?!” Shane shouted, running a circle around Rick and staring at the walkers in front of him.

“Look, Shane just back off!” Rick ordered but his partner was having none of it.

“Why do your people have guns?!” Hershel demanded, staring at the group in shock. Everyone came to a stop and they backed away from the snarling walkers, a woman and a man both dressed in work uniforms, before watching the scene unfold.

“Are you kidding me?” Shane screamed, giving Hershel dagger stares. “You see!” He snapped his head towards the others and pointed at the walkers. “You see what they’re holding on to!”

“I see who I’m holding on to!” Hershel argued, trying to keep his balance as the female walker snapped and lunged forward.

“Nah man, you don’t!” Shane spat. Parker stumbled slightly as Daryl pushed her behind him with enough force to make her head spin, before raising his shotgun at the walkers in defence, scanning his eyes for any potential way they could suddenly escape Rick and Hershel’s grasp.

“Stay behind me.” He muttered but Parker shook her head.

“Listen to him, Daryl! Please, just listen to Rick!” She said but Daryl shoved her back again, harder thi time.

“Do as I say!” He shouted and she flinched but stopped and watched instead, holding a hand to her mouth as Shane continued to circle them all, hollering and swearing at his ex partner.

“These things ain’t sick! They ain’t people! They’re dead!” Shane exclaimed. “They don’t feel nothing because guess what, they kill! That’s all they do! They’re the things that killed Amy!” Parker saw Andrea nod her head in agreement and she felt her hate for Shane building in her chest. There was no way she was letting him manipulate any of them, not on her watch.

“Shane, stop it!” She cried out desperately but he ignored her.

“They killed Otis!” He carried on, making Patricia gasp at the mention of her husband's name.

“Just shut up!” Rick yelled, gripping the walker with all of his might as Lori and Carl hastily made their way towards the rest of the group. The second Shane started to open fire on the walkers, Parker realised there was no turning back. They couldn’t redeem themselves, not after this. Hershel felt tears run down his cheeks as the woman he once knew to be one of the local diners waitresses kept biting and scratching at Shane, even with bullets in her chest. Everyone screamed as the bullets burst through the walkers stomach and chest, tiny spurts of blood flying from the wounds. Glenn jumped back towards Maggie, raising his gun at the walkers.

“Woah!” He cried out, looking over at his sister who was still tucked behind Daryl, his gun pointed firmly at Rick’s walker in front of him.

“Stop!” Rick cried.

“That’s three rounds in the chest! Someone who’s alive, could they just take that? Why is it still coming?” Shane shot again, barely missing Hershel’s head and Parker ran forward.

“No!” She screamed but she got too close to the walker and jumped back, feeling Daryl’s hand wrap around her arm and yank her back.

“You wanna get yourself killed?” He snapped but she pushed him away.

“Make him stop!” She begged, but Daryl just shook his head. "He's going to ruin everything! We can't go back out there, we'll all die!" She sobbed, gripping her hair and pulling at it in defeat as Shane shot one more time, the bullet going straight into the female walkers head. Her body slammed to the ground and Parker felt her stomach drop as Hershel began to cry, not believing what he had just witnessed.

“That’s enough!” Shane barked out, standing in front of them all with his head held high. “Risking our lives for a little girl who’s gone!” Carol flinched and Parker felt the urge to smack the hateful look right off of Shane’s face, the bastard. “Enough! Living next to a barn full of those things that are trying to kill us! ENOUGH!” Shane panted, trying to catch his breath, before shaking his head at them all. “Rick, it ain’t like it was before! Now, if y’all wanna live, if you wanna survive, you gotta fight for it! I’m talking about fight! Right here! Right now!” Shane then marched right over to the doors.

“Shane, brother, please! Do not do this!” Rick begged him.

“Don’t do it!” Glenn screamed and Parker began to cry as everyone around her started to panic. It was all going wrong...all of it. Just like the attack in the Quarry that night, when they lost Amy and everyone else. It was happening all over again.

“Rick!” Lori cried out, gripping Carl to her chest and pleading with her husband to do something to stop Shane, anything, but it was too late. He wrenched the large wooden barrier off of the door and shot at the locks, the only thing keeping the dead away from the living, before banging on the doors and yelling with all his might, riling them all up. Everyone watched as he yanked the door open and hurried back, aiming his gun at the first walker that tumbled out, snarling and grabbing for him.

Andrea and T-Dog hurried forward and began shooting as well, and that only made Parker cry harder. The moment Daryl opened fire however, she nearly collapsed. She felt her knees buckle as Hershel and Maggie held each other, crying, whilst Beth and Patricia did the same thing. They had family and friends in there, and even though they were dead, it must have seemed like they were murdering them all themselves. She stumbled into Carol who held her in her arms, trying to stroke her arm comfortingly as Parker shook with a mixture of fear and rage.  
The walkers just kept on coming, all of them as bloody and broken as the last, and for every walker that emerged, one more bullet was fired. Just as Shane spun around and shot the walker Rick had been holding in the head, Parker watched as Glenn rushed to Maggie.

“Maggie…” He said, looking at the walkers. She then nodded at her head.

“Yeah. Go!” Glenn ran to Andrea’s side and shot down a large walker that was limping on a broken ankle. Parker couldn’t take it. She clutched Carol’s arm and covered her mouth with her hand as the walkers tumbled to the ground one by one, the sound of gunshots ringing in her ears and making her head scream.

After what seemed like an eternity, they stopped. Parker panted out her breaths as everyone around her stood in shock at what had happened, the cries and whimpers of the Greene family being the only thing they could hear. Until a soft moan came from inside the barn. Everyone stared at the door, hearing the shuffling of the hay and the grunts of another walker making its way towards them, and they held their breath. Parker felt her heart break the second the walker came into view, holding its tiny, scratched up arms in front of its small face to shield the sunlight. It was a girl, not much older than Carl, with a blue shirt, khaki shorts, and dirty strawberry blonde hair. Parker stood up straighter as everyone around her locked eyes with the tiny walker, all of them realising the same thing.

It was Sophia.

“Oh my god...Sophia!” Carol cried out, pushing Parker away and sprinting forward, tears rushing down her face as she made her way to her daughter. Thankfully, Daryl was in her way and he threw the shotgun to the dirt before grabbing Carol around the waist, stopping her before she got too close, and held her too his chest as the two collapsed to the floor. Carol let out desperate whimpers and reached out with her arm as her dead daughter shuffled past the destruction at her feet. Parker felt tears pool in her eyes as she watched Rick grudgingly walk over and take out his pistol. She heard Carl sobbing beside her, Lori cradling him to her chest as she told him not to watch. Parker felt her knees shake and she tried to steady herself as Rick pointed his gun at Sophia’s head, watching her look him right in the eye, before pulling the trigger.

As Sophia collapsed to the ground, Parker’s Cherokee Rose fell from behind her ear. And in that moment, everyone seemed to have died with her.


	8. The Second, and Then The First

Rick slowly lowered his gun, and the realisation of what he had just done began to take over. He turned to see Carol sobbing and gasping for air in Daryl’s arms as he tried to pick her up, wanting to turn her around and get her away from the carnage.

“Don’t look.” He said in her ear as he dragged her to her feet, feeling her weight buckle. “Don’t look!”

Carol then shoved him away, glaring at the people surrounding her, and fled toward the RV, tears pouring down her face. Parker felt her chest rack with sobs as she turned to take one last look at Daryl before following Carol. She wrapped her arms around herself as she walked out of the gated area, hearing someone coming up behind her.

“Park? Parker are you-” She smacked Daryl’s hand away and furiously glared at him.

“How could you just let that happen?!” She cried, her voice hoarse after all her screaming and crying. Daryl blinked at her in shock.

“Parker-”

“Don’t ‘Parker’ me!” She spat, taking a step towards him. “You just stood there and let that asshole shoot Hershel’s wife, his step-son! How the hell could you do that to him?!”

“They aren’t his family anymore!” Daryl argued, returning her glare. “They’re dead, they have been for months! You know that!”

“That’s not the point!” Parker shouted, earning everyone’s attention. “Hershel didn’t think of them like that, he probably thinks Shane just murdered his entire family! He watched them die, AGAIN!”

“It ain’t like that and you know it.” Daryl said and Parker was seething at how calm he sounded. Why wasn’t he hurt? Why couldn’t he show some sort of emotion for once?

“Screw you.” She hissed under her breath. “Screw you!” She started beating on Daryl’s chest, her smaller hands balled into fists and punching him as hard as she could. But she felt more tears fall and her lungs started to burn, and eventually she felt her movements start to cease. She stood back for a moment and let her hands fall to her sides as she hung her head, sobbing loudly. She then felt arms wrap around her and a warm chest met her cheek. She couldn’t help but curl into Daryl and cry.

“M’sorry, Park.” He whispered, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “‘M’sorry.”

Parker didn’t seem to take in what happened next, the screams coming from Beth as she ran up to her dead mother, prying a walker from her body, before getting attacked. The others grabbed her just in time, stabbing Annette Greene right through the skull, but that only seemed to set Beth off even more. Hershel was devastated, and as Maggie led him back up to the farmhouse, Parker watched him grip her hand with his, trying to keep it together for just a little bit longer. They were going to be kicked out, she thought, as Daryl kept her close to his chest, they were going to be thrown out there again.

Glenn would lose Maggie, or even worse, leave Parker and stay with her instead. Shane would be isolated from the rest of them, or at least everyone except for Andrea seeing as she was always on his side nowadays. Carol wouldn’t talk to anybody, not even Daryl and Parker, and god forbid if she hurt herself…

Parker refused to let that happen. But for now, all she could do was grip onto Daryl’s shirt and let the tears that had been backed up for months fall from her eyes.

***  
Carol didn’t go to Sophia’s funeral. When Parker had asked her why, saying that it was her little girl out there, Carol just gave her a blank stare and shook her head.

“That’s not my little girl.” She said sadly, staring out the window of the RV. “That’s some other...thing.”

“Carol-” Parker tried to say, but the words seem to disappear from her mouth.

“My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought…” Carol’s voice trailed off before she let out a breath. “She didn’t cry herself to sleep, she didn’t go hungry, she didn’t try to find her way back. Sophia died a long time ago.” Parker had left her alone after that, wanting to give her some space to think and time to mourn in her own way. She joined her brother by the small cluster of trees beside the barn, where they had buried Sophia, Annette and Shaun. She held Glenn’s hand, just like she had done during Otis’s funeral, and stared at the graves in front of her, her eyes mostly focusing on the smallest one closest to Daryl. He was staring at it too, and she wondered what he was thinking about. He had risked his life every day for weeks to save that girl, and even though she wasn’t his, he must have lost something too.

Eventually, everyone left one by one. Parker stayed, letting Maggie and Glenn walk back to the house together, knowing they probably had some things to discuss. Hershel had told Rick he wanted them all gone, meaning Glenn would leave without Maggie or stay without Parker. Either way, he’d lose someone he cared about. Parker tried not to let that thought get to her, and waited for everyone to leave before crouching at Sophia’s grave. She placed the Rose that had fallen from her ear, that she thankfully saved before it got trampled on by the others, onto the mound of earth and bit her lip.

“I don’t know how long you were out there alone.” She said softly, kneeling in the dirt and resting her hands on her thighs. “But, I hope you know that we looked for you...all of us. Every day we went into those woods trying to find you...bring you back home.” Parker sighed and looked at the trees, trying to keep her breathing steady. “Daryl he...he did the most for you. Nearly got himself killed. But that’s because he didn’t give up. He believed in you, Sophia. He really did.” Parker wiped at her eyes before standing up straight. “I did too.”

Parker turned to walk back to the house when she noticed something in the camp. She squinted her eyes, trying to get a better look, when she realised Daryl was taking his tent down. She frowned and hurried as fast as she could to the camp, seeing his things all packed up and ready to be moved.

“What are you doing?” She asked as she approached him. Daryl glanced up then continued to roll his tent up into it’s bag.

“Need a change of scenery.” He said sarcastically and Parker shook her head.

“So what, you’re just gonna leave us now?” She asked bitterly, even though she felt more hurt than angry, and Daryl scoffed.

“Where else I gotta go, huh?” He bit back. “I ain’t leavin’, christ woman.”

“Then why are you packing up? What, you wanna go on vacation or something? Take a few days to clear your head?” Daryl threw the tent bag down and marched up to her, getting in her face, and Parker felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up, just like when Shane spoke to her earlier on.

“Don’t piss me off, girl.” He growled and Parker tilted her chin up.

“Then don’t run away from your issues.” She said slowly. “We’ve all got them, and we just have to deal with them. But you just run away, right? Like a coward.” Daryl seemed slightly taken aback, and Parker knew she had struck a nerve somewhere deep down inside him. “Sophia’s dead, we’re all grieving. It’s not just you.”

“I don’t need your goddamn words of wisdom.” Daryl spat. “So get off my back!” He retreated, grabbing his belongings and hauling them over to his bike that he had brought round to the camp when everyone left the barn. Once everything was strapped on, Parker watched in defeat as Daryl threw a leg over the seat and revved the engine. He didn’t even look back at her as kicked the bike to life and sped off up the hill, far away from the camp, but still in her sight.

“Shit.” She breathed and put her hands on her hips just as she heard someone running up to her from the house. “Now what.” She grumbled as her brother ran towards her, panting and trying to keep his breathing steady.

“Parker! It’s Beth!” Her heart beat quickened as Glenn came to a stop in front of her, leaning on his knees and gasping for air.

“Beth? What happened?” She asked, pulling him upright.

“She’s collapsed, Lori thinks its from shock.”

“W-where’s Hershel? He would know-”

“We can’t find him,” Glenn blurted and Parker froze. “Did you see him leave the farm?” She wracked her brain but didn’t remember seeing him since Rick shot Sophia, so she shook her head.

“Shit, what are we gonna do?” She asked.

“We’re going to find him.” Rick walked up to them both, gun in hand. He shoved it in it’s holster before turning to Parker. “Maggie told us that there’s a bar in town, Atlands. Hershel was a heavy drinker once and I reckon that’s where we’ll find him.”

“How do you know he’s been drinking?” Parker asked with a frown. Rick then held up a bronze hip flask with the initials ‘HG’ carved on the back.

“This was in his room.” Rick told her.

“He quit drinking years ago,” Glenn explained. “He must have started after Shane-” He trailed off, looking over at the barn. Parker nodded, understanding what he was trying to say.

“Okay, okay well...we should hurry.”

“We? No, it’s just Rick and I going.” Glenn said and Parker’s mouth dropped open.

“I’m not letting you go out there, not just the two of you! Look what happened the last time you and Maggie went to that village by yourselves.”

“Parker.” Rick said and she turned to him, determination in her eyes. “Please, I know you’re worried. But I swear to you, just like I did with Maggie, I’ll bring him home safe.”

“No.” She said sternly. “I’m not arguing. I’m coming with you two. So get me a gun.”

“Park.” Glenn warned but she ignored him, keeping her eyes trained on Rick. He nodded his head and sniffed.

“Alright.” Rick gave in. “Alright, fine. But you stay close to me, okay?”

“I’ve been on runs before in Atlanta when it was overrun. I can handle a little town.” Parker said with a small, yet confident, smile. Rick nodded again and led the two of them back to the farmhouse, grabbing a shotgun and an assault rifle before letting the twins choose their weapon of choice. Parker paused before grabbing the rifle, making Glenn groan in protest.

“You’re better with that one.” She shrugged. “Besides, this is no time for sibling rivalry.”

“Shut up.” Glenn muttered whilst hauling the shotgun over his shoulder. Parker joined Rick by the car and clambered into the backseat, setting her gun down and resting her cheek on her palm. She watched her brother say goodbye to Maggie, who had come out of the farmhouse to see them off. She felt a smile tug at her lips as Rick awkwardly turned away when the couple kissed, Maggie gripping onto Glenn’s shirt and saying something into his ear. Glenn nodded, then turned to walk back to the car, an unreadable expression on his face. Rick then hopped into the driver's seat and slammed the door, waiting for Glenn to put his seat belt on before backing out of the farmhouse driveway and onto the dirt track that led up to the village.

The ride into town inside the car was uncomfortable for the first 5 minutes, before Parker finally got tired of staring at the vacant look on her twin brother's face and leaned forward, resting her elbows on the passenger and drivers seats. “Okay, spill.” She said, tapping his shoulder. Rick glanced at the two of them, wanting to know what was up with Glenn too. Glenn ran his tongue over his bottom lip and awkwardly looked out the window. “You know you can’t try and ignore me forever, I’ll just pester you even more.”

“Maggie said she loves me.” Glenn said suddenly and Parker blinked at him, not knowing what to say. Both Parker and Rick stared at him before he nervously chuckled. “She doesn’t mean it.” He said, tapping the handle of the shot gun. “I mean, she can’t. She’s...she’s upset. Confused. I mean she’s probably feeling-”

“I think she’s smart enough to know what she’s feelin’,” Rick said with a calm voice. Glenn hastily shook his head.

“No, no.” He said and Rick chuckled at his naivety. “She, she wants to be in love, so she needs something to...to like, hold onto-”

“Glenn, it’s pretty obvious Maggie loves you.” Parker laughed, and Rick smirked at her through the rear view mirror in agreement. “And it's not because you’re one of the last men standing, so what’s the problem?”

Glenn paused. “I didn’t say it back.” He replied sheepishly. Parker sat back slightly and looked down.

“Oh.” She said quietly and her brother sighed.

“I’ve never had a woman say that to me before. You know, except mom of course...and the girls.” Parker flinched at the mention of their family but kept a brave face. “But with Maggie it’s different, I mean we barely know each other! What does she really know about me? Nothing! We’re practically strangers.” Glenn shook his head, ashamed of himself. “I didn’t know what to do, I just stood there like a jerk!”

“Hey.” Rick said gently, turning to him. “This is a good thing. Something we don’t get enough of these days, enjoy it. And when we get back, return the favour. It’s not like she’s goin’ anywhere.” He turned his eyes back to the road. Parker patted her brother’s shoulder comfortingly.

“He’s right. Just tell her when we get back. Don’t let that chance slip away.” Glenn smiled at them both and nodded.

“Okay.” He said. Parker sat back in her seat and stared out of the window. Her mind started to wander as Rick drove them through the deserted village, passing the Pharmacy and a few clothing stores as well as an abandoned market, all of the stores left in tattered pieces. She thought about how Glenn and Maggie had managed to find something in this new world, something beautiful, yet something strong. Glenn had more to fight for now, and she was proud of him. He needed more love in his life other than his sister, and Maggie was someone she knew she could trust to take care of her brother, especially after their talk and hearing her defend Glenn to Hershel. That’s all she needed to know; that she had Glenn’s back no matter what.

Parker wished she had someone else to fight for, not like her brother or her friends, but something different. Something more...intimate. She shook her head. There wasn’t exactly many suitors lining up to win her hand, she thought, but her mind flashed to the feeling she felt when Daryl stayed with her in Hershel’s room. How he held her hand when she woke up, how he kept her close to his chest when he picked her up after being shot, even kissing him on the temple made her heart beat faster and her palms feel sweaty. She had tried to ignore it, this weird feeling in her stomach whenever he was around. But the more time they spent together, the stronger that feeling became. And hearing that Glenn was finally going to admit his true feelings to Maggie when they got home made her think of something else. It’s time to take your own advice.

Atlands was a small bar, smaller than Parker had expected, and as she stepped out of the car and stared up at it, taking in the rustic aesthetic and rotting wooden walls, she realised that Hershel really must be going down hill if he wound up in a place like this. She didn’t blame him, she’d probably turn to alcohol too if Glenn had died right in front of her. She shivered at the thought and held her gun close as the men walked up to the front doors, checking the coast was clear before hesitantly going inside. The bar was almost pitch black, the only light source being the light coming in through the windows. Parker stepped inside, gun raised, before she noticed the back of Hershel’s head. No one else was here. He was sat at the far end of the bar with his back to them, nursing a glass of whiskey in his hand with a large bottle of Jack to his right. His head lifted at the sound of them entering the building and he sighed.

“Hershel?” Rick called out softly.

“Who’s with you?” His mono tonal reply spoke volumes to Parker, and she knew he was mentally on his last legs. Seeing Annette and Shaun being gunned down wrecked him, and drinking seemed to be the only thing he thought he had left.

“Glenn.” Rick said. “And Parker.” Hershel let out the tiniest of laughs before taking a sip from the glass.

“Maggie send them?” Rick took a step forward, holstering his gun, and Glenn and Parker followed suit, keeping their weapons low.

“They volunteered. They’re good like that.” Hershel nodded, still not turning around to face them. Rick took the silence as an opportunity to approach him, and went as far as to stand right beside Hershel, leaning his hand on the bar and looking directly at him. “How many have you had?” He asked.

“Not enough.” Hershel said with a shake of his head. Rick glanced over his shoulder at the Rhee’s, neither knowing what to do, before turning back to Hershel.

“Let’s finish this back at home.” He said, leaning closer to the older man. Hershel didn’t respond, so Rick took the initiative. “Beth collapsed. She’s in some sort of...state.” Hershel looked up at him, fear in his eyes, and Rick felt like he was getting somewhere. “She must be in shock, and I think you are too.”

“Maggie’s with her?”

“Yeah. But Beth needs you.” Rick said desperately.

“What could I do?” Hershel asked, his voice drained.

“Save her.” Parker spoke up, fed up of the pity party the old man was throwing for himself. “You’re her father, you’re supposed to protect her. Instead you ran off to drown your sorrows, and now she’s in trouble!” Glenn grabbed her arm.

“Careful.” He whispered, she realised the anger was taking over too much and she nodded, stepping back.

“You’re right. But she needs her mother, not me.” Hershel said in reply. “Or, at least she needs to mourn. Like she should have done weeks ago.” They all stared at him, not realising what he was saying. Then it dawned on them. He regretted it, keeping the walkers in the barn, keeping Annette and Shaun with them instead of sending them off like they should have. They should have killed and buried their loved ones like everyone else, but Hershel didn’t let them. And now he was paying the price. “I robbed her of that.” He carried on, looking at the ceiling of the bar. “I see that now.” He took a long swig of his drink and Rick shuffled about next to him.

“You thought there was a cure.” He said. “Can’t blame yourself for holding out for hope.”

“Hope?” Hershel said, and turned to face Rick properly. “When I first saw you running across my field with your boy in your arms, I had little hope he’d survive.”

“But he did.” Rick pointed out.

Hershel nodded. “He did. Even though we lost Otis. Your man Shane made it back, and we saved your boy. That was the miracle that proved to me miracles do exist. Only it was a sham.” Parker frowned from behind him. “A bait and switch. I was a fool, Rick. And your people saw that. My daughters deserve better than that.”

“You’re not a fool, Hershel.” Parker said gently, reaching over and placing a hand on his shoulder tenderly. “You wanted the world to be right again, how it used to be. I want that too but...it just can’t happen. Even if there is some sort of cure out there, the world will never really go back to how it was. Not after all this.” He looked up at her, his eyes wide and full of desperation.

“I had hoped you would wake up.” He said quietly and Parker let out a shaky breath. “You had a lot of people counting on you. Your brother, Carl, the country boy, Daryl.” Parker’s cheeks heated up and she broke eye contact with Hershel, making him smile ever so slightly. “You’re strong. Stronger than I ever could be.”

“No, we’re both strong.” Parker said. “But in different ways.” Hershel paused before he reached forward to grab the bottle of Jack and twisted the cap off. Parker sighed and walked away, shrugging at her brother. There wasn’t anything else she could really say to him. Rick followed her and leaned against the door.

“So what do we do, wait for him to pass out?” Glenn asked.

“Just go.” Hershel called out, making them jump. “Just go!”

“I promised Maggie I’d bring you home safe.” Rick said with authority.

“Like you promised that little girl?” Parker snapped her head up in shock and turned to look at Rick. The colour had drained from his face and a grimace now remained on his lips. Rick then walked right back over to him.

“So what’s your plan?” He asked. “Finish that bottle? Drink yourself to death and leave your girls alone?” That seemed to do it. Hershel pushed the bar stool back and stood up, spinning round to face Rick.

“Stop telling me how to care for my family! My farm!” He hissed. “You people are like a plague! I do the Christian thing and give you shelter, and you’re destroying it all!”

“The world was already in bad shape when we met.” Rick said, his voice deep and threatening and making Parker shudder. The twins shared concerned glances as Hershel and Rick stood practically toe to toe, both seething with rage.

“And you take no responsibility!” Hershel spat. “You’re supposed to be their leader!”

“Well I’m here now aren’t I!” Rick shouted and Parker stepped up to them both.

“Guys, stop it!” She warned, glancing at the bar door, Glenn doing the same. “If you keep yelling at each other we’re gonna have a pretty big problem. Walkers could be here at any moment if you keep making too much noise!” Hershel waved his hand in dismissal before turning back to the bar and returning to his stool, gulping down the rest of his drink. Rick marched over to him and held onto his arm.

“Come on, your girls need you-”

“I didn’t want to believe you!” Hershel cried, ripping his arm from Rick’s grasp. “You told me there was no cure, that these people were dead, not sick! I chose not to believe that!” The room went silent and Parker hoisted her gun higher against her chest, feeling some comfort in holding it close to her. “But when Shane shot Lou in the chest, and she just kept coming...that’s when I knew what an ass I’d been!”

Parker hesitated before gulping down her nerves. “Lou?” She asked, referring to the walker Hershel had been holding onto when Shane went crazy at the barn. Parker remembered in that moment a tiny name tag on her dress, and felt guilty for what Shane had done. That thing was once a person, sometimes she forgot about that. Hershel glanced in her direction. “That was her name?” He paused before nodding sadly.

“Yes. She was always kind to me, since before all of this. So I saw fit to take her in. I owed her that much.” He then turned back to Rick. “It took him shooting Lou, my friend, to realise all of that. That Annette had died a long time ago, and I was feeding her rotten corpse!” Hershel felt tears spring in his eyes and he wiped at them furiously. “That’s when I knew there was no hope! And when that...little girl came out of the barn...the look on your face? I knew you knew it too. Right? There is no hope. And you know that now, don’t you? There’s no hope for any of us.” Parker blinked her eyes rapidly, trying to stop them from welling up, and looked at her brother. He looked tired, clearly wanting to get Hershel back to his daughters, but this was going nowhere.

“There’s always hope.” Parker spoke up, earning all of their gazes on her. “Even when everything turns to shit, and we lose everything. There’s always a reason to go on.” She bit her lip as her eyes watered. “There’s got to be. If not...there’s nothing. So we have to believe in something. I believe that Rick will take care of us, because he can. He’s a good leader.”

“Parker-” Rick started to say but she held her hand up to silence him.

“I believe that you will get off your sorry ass and go home to your family.” She said, directing her attention to Hershel. “And I believe that one day things won’t be so bad. We’ll have crap days or weeks or months but we can get through that!” She shrugged and let out a humourless laugh. “We always will. Because, let's face it. It can’t get any worse than this.”

Everyone jumped at the sound of the bar doors swinging open and Parker and Glenn both turned to see two men standing in the light of the doorway. One was shorter than the other, wearing a navy wife beater and some jeans, whilst the other, a lot bigger and a lot wider, strolled in with a checked shirt and some sweat pants. The shorter one smirked at the sight of the four strangers staring at them and turned to his friend.

“Son of a bitch.” He said, sounding impressed. “They’re alive.” No one said anything as the two men walked in, slowly, raising their hands in surrender. “Don’t worry,” The shorter guy said with a reassuring smile. “We ain’t here to start shit, just wanted a drink.”

“And to see if you guys were actually real.” The bigger guy said, his voice a lot deeper and a lot more menacing, and Parker really didn’t like the way he was looking her up and down.

“I’m Dave.” The short guy said, sitting at one of the tables and grabbing a bottle of vodka from the centre of it, taking a small shot glass and pouring some liquid into it. “And that scrawny looking douchebag over there is Tony.” He said, mocking the bigger guy.

“Eat me, Dave.” He scoffed and sat at the bar near Hershel, making his own drink.

“Yeah, maybe someday I will.” Dave said, a big grin on his face. Apparently this guy could joke about anything. Glenn and Parker both watched Rick walk over to Dave from behind the bar, retreating there to get some distance from the strangers. Just in case. “We met on the ninety-five coming out of Philly.” Dave explained to Rick and the others. “What a damn shit show that was.” Glenn smiled slightly and nodded at the two of them.

“I’m Glenn.” He said with a friendly tone. “It’s nice to meet some new people.”

“Rick Grimes.” Rick joined in, grabbing a glass. Dave then looked at Hershel.

“How about you pal, you have one?” He asked, referring to a drink.

“I just quit.” Hershel replied almost immediately, making Parker smile a little. Dave nodded with a chuckle.

“You got a unique sense of timing my friend.” He said then looked over at Parker behind the bar. “And you, sweetheart? I bet you’re a cocktail kind of girl. Want me to make you something?” Parker tilted her head. He wasn’t being condescending, which she greatly appreciated, but she still didn’t particularly want to accept a drink from a stranger, even during the end of the world.

“I’m good for now.” She said and Tony snorted, making her look over at him.

“Live a little. We might not get much time to have fun.” He said with a wink and Parker clenched her jaw.

“That’s Parker.” Rick said, nodding her way. “And Hershel. He lost people today, a lot of them.” Dave’s face morphed into a sad expression and he sighed.

“I’m truly sorry to hear that.” He said sincerely. He then raised his glass. “To better days, and new friends. And to our dead, may they be in a better place.” All the men, bar Hershel, raised their glasses and drank. Parker folded her arms, after placing her gun on the underside of the bar, and watched them all. At least they got to enjoy something nice like this every once in awhile, they deserved it. Dave leaned over the table to grab some more liquor, when he noticed Rick staring at the gun tucked into the back of jeans. He put the bottle down and grabbed it, flipping it over in his hands and showing it to the group. “Not bad, huh? I got it off a cop.” Rick raised an eyebrow.

“I’m a cop.” He said casually and Parker smirked.

“This one was already dead.” Dave explained.

“You fellas are a long way from Philadelphia.” Rick said after a pause.

“Feels like we’re a long way from anywhere.” Dave said loudly, leaning back into his chair and crossing one leg over the other.

“What drove you South?”

“I can tell you it wasn’t the weather. Must of dropped thirty pounds in sweat alone down here. Uh, first it was DC. Heard there might be some kind of refugee camp but...the roads were so jammed we never even got close. Decided to get off the highways into the sticks, keep hauling ass.” Dave rattled on. “Every group we came across had a new rumour about a way out of this thing.”

“A guy told us there was a coast guard down in the gulfs sending ferries to the islands.” Tony chimed in.

“Our latest was a rail yard in Montgomery running trains to the middle of the country, Kansas, Nebraska-”

“Nebraska?” Glenn asked in confusion.

“Low population, lots of guns.” Tony pointed out. Glenn shrugged.

“Kind of makes sense.” He said quietly.

“Ever been to Nebraska kid?” Dave spoke up, turning to the twins. “There’s a reason they don’t call them flower states.” The two men laughed, glancing at each other, and Rick took a large gulp of his drink. “How about you guys?” Dave asked.

“Fort Benning, eventually.” Rick said.

Dave raised his eyebrows. “I hate to piss in your cornflakes, Officer.” He said sadly. “But um, we ran across a group who was stationed at Benning. Said the place was overrun by Lame Brains.”

“Lame brains?” Parker asked with a frown. “That’s what you call them?”

“You got something else?” Dave asked curiously.

“Walkers.” She said and he laughed.

“I like that, walkers. That’s good.” Glenn stood up straight, staring at Dave and Tony in distress.

“Wait so...Fort Benning is gone?” He asked. “Are you for real?” Both men glanced at each other again, as if having a conversation in their heads with one another.

“Sadly I am.” Dave said, the frown returning to his face. “The truth is, there is no way out of this mess. Just going from one pipe dream to the next, praying one of these mindless freaks doesn’t grab a hold of you when you sleep.”

“If you sleep.” Tony said quietly.

“It doesn’t look like you guys are hanging your hats here.” Dave suddenly said, his entire demeanour changing and his voice was riddled with curiosity. “You holding up somewhere else?” Parker stiffened. Something was off. She subtly glanced at Rick and he seemed to have the same idea, but looked less cautious about it.

“Not really.” Rick said, sounding distant. Dave didn’t look too convinced.

“Those your car's out front?” He asked, pointing over his shoulder.

“Yeah.” Glenn nodded awkwardly.

“Why?” Parker asked, her arms still folded over her chest. Her face was twisted into a small scowl and she wished she could keep her anger in check for more than a minute. These guys hadn't done anything yet, so why did she suddenly feel so threatened?

“Well, we’re living in ours.” Dace said. “And yours look, uh, kinda empty. Clean. Where’s all your gear?”

“We’re with a larger group.” Parker stared at Hershel with semi wide eyes, not wanting to look too surprised that he was admitting that piece of information about them. “Out scouting, thought we could use a drink.”

“A drink?” Dave smirked. “Hershel, I thought you quit?” Parker held her breath. “Well, we were thinking of setting up around here. Is it safe?”

“It can be.” Glenn said. “Uh well I’ve...killed a couple walkers around here.”

“Walkers.” Dave shook his head, still not over their little nickname for the dead. “I like that a lot better than lame brains. So what, you guys set up on the outskirts or a development lot?”

“Trailer park or something?” Tony asked, getting up and walking to the corner of the room.

“Farm?” Dave asked, and Hershel sat up in his bar stool. “Old MacDonald had a farm…” Dave began to sing, but trailed off as Tony leaned against the wall beside him and unzipped his pants. “You got a farm?” He asked. Parker turned away in disgust as Tony started to piss against the wall, not caring that he was surrounded by strangers.”Is it safe?” Dave continued, ignoring what his friend was doing. “You got food, water?”

“You got more coos?” Tony spoke up. “Haven’t had a piece of ass in weeks.” Parker scoffed to herself and that caught Dave’s attention.

“Ah, listen. Pardon my friend, Doll.” He apologised to Parker, rubbing his face. “Some kids they got...they got no tact. No disrespect meant.” He said with a nod. She shrugged.

“I’ve heard worse.” She muttered and her brother shuffled his feet, clearly uncomfortable. Dave then turned to him.

“So listen, Glenn-”

“We’ve said enough.” Rick said firmly and Dave stared at him.

“Hang on a second, this farm sounds pretty sweet.” Dave said, looking over at his friend who finally stopped making a giant puddle on the floor. “Doesn’t it sound sweet, Tony?”

“Yeah, real sweet.” He zipped his pants up and looked directly at Parker, grinning a foul grin and making her stomach knot up in disgust.

“How about a little Southern hospitality?” Dave asked. “We got some bodies back at camp, having a real hard time, I don’t see why you can’t make room for a few more. We can pull our weight in resources, man power-”

“Look, I’m sorry.” Rick said. “But that’s not an option.” Tony looked at his friend, who was starting to show signs of annoyance.

“Doesn’t sound like it would be a problem.” He said slowly.

“I’m sorry, we can’t.” Hershel said with a much softer tone than Rick.

“We can’t take in any more.” Rick concluded. There was a pause before Dave laughed to himself, scratching his eyebrow.

“Wow, you guys are something else. I thought, you know, I thought we were friends. We got people we gotta look out for too.”

“We don’t know anything about you.” Parker spoke up. “There’s no harm in being cautious.”

“That’s true.” Dave said. “You don’t know anything about us. You don’t know what we’ve had to go through out there. Things we’ve had to do. I bet you’ve had to do some of those things yourself, am I right?”

“Yeah. I’m sure you are.” Parker said, not breaking eye contact with him. Dave bit his lip.

“There’s nobody who’s hands are clean left in this world.” He said, his face starting to look distressed. “We’re all the same. So come on let’s...let’s take a nice friendly hayride to this farm and we’ll get to know each other.”

“That’s not gonna happen.” Rick said and Dave shook his head.

“Rick-”

“This is bullshit,” Tony snapped and Parker let her arms move from her chest to the bar, resting her fingers on the handle of her assault rifle.

“Calm down.” Rick ordered gruffly and Tony turned on him.

“Don’t tell me to calm down! Don’t you ever tell me to calm down!”

“Woah-” Dave said, raising his hands up.

“I’ll shoot all four of you assholes in the head and take your damn farm!” Rick got up and Parker pulled her gun up as Dave jumped from his seat and pushed his friend back, patting his shoulders and giving him a look to make him stop.

“Woah! Relax, take it easy! No one’s killing anybody.” Dave grinned, and if Parker didn’t think of him as a threat she might have thought that smile was attractive. But she still kept her weapon close. Dave then moved back and hopped over the bar. “Nobody’s shooting anybody, right Rick?” He asked. He turned to face him and Tony took out his gun from behind Rick, making them all flinch. Dave grabbed his own gun and slowly rested it on the top of the bar, smiling at them all. “We’re just friends having a drink.” He said. “That’s all. Now, where’s the good stuff?”

He slapped his hands together and searched the back of the bar, all whilst Parker, Glenn and Hershel stared at Tony who was still holding his gun by his side. Rick didn’t move from his position in the centre of the room, and it seemed like everyone apart from Dave was on edge.  
Dave reached down and grabbed something from beneath the bar and Rick instantly brought his hand to his pistol, making him stop and look at him. Dave grinned.

“Hey, look at that.” He pulled out some tequila and waved it in front of them all. “That’ll work.” He looked at Parker. “What’ll it be, huh? I’ll make anything you want darling, just say the word.”

Parker shook her head slowly. “I’m good. Thank you.”

“Suit yourself, pretty lady. Nice to see someone with manners.” Dave chuckled before pouring a shot. “You guys gotta understand something. We can’t stay out there. You know what it’s like.” Rick nodded at him.

“Yeah. I do. But the farm is too crowded as it is, I’m sorry. You’ll have to keep looking.”

“Keep looking?” Dave said with a curt nod. “Where do you suggest we do that?”

Rick shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. “I don’t know. I hear Nebraska’s nice.” Dave laughed again, taking the shot glass.

“Nebraska. This guy.” There was a brief pause before Dave reached for his gun, but Rick had been trained well enough to shoot first, hitting him right in the head. He heard Tony cock his own gun and was about to turn around to take him out too, but another shot rang through the air and the bigger man was on the ground with a bullet between his eyes in a second. Rick spun around to see Parker holding her gun to eye, her finger still on the trigger, and her breathing erratic. Glenn had ducked behind the bar and was slowly easing his way back up, staring at Tony’s lifeless body near his feet. He had collapsed into the pool of his own piss and his blood started to drip out onto the floor and mix with it, making Glenn gag.

Parker thought her heart was going to beat out of her chest as her hands shook, the air from her lungs coming out in quick pants at the realisation of what she had just done. She had killed a man, a person, not a walker. She had never killed a human being before, she never needed too. But Rick almost got shot...she had to do it, right? She felt someone take the gun from her and she jumped at seeing Rick right in front of her, setting the gun down on the bar and bending down to look into her eyes. He seemed so calm, why was he so calm about killing somebody? Then she realised he must have done this a hundred times before during the police force. He was a Sheriff for god sake, no wonder he could handle it. She was just a girl, however. A normal person. And she had just killed her first man.

“Parker?” Rick said gently, resting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Look at me.” She let her eyes wander to his and she felt them well up.

“I-I shot him.” She whispered.

“I know. I’m sorry you had to do that.”

“Had to?” She repeated and Rick nodded.

“Thank you. You saved my life.” He said gently and she looked away.”

“I had to.” She said, trying to convince herself more than anyone else. “I had to.”


	9. Atlanta State

They all gathered around Tony’s body after Parker started to calm down. Glenn gripped his gun and looked between his sister and the man she had just shot in the head, before letting out a shaky breath.

“Holy shit.” He muttered, and Rick side eyed him.

“You alright?” He asked, looking at both of the Rhee siblings. Glenn turned to him.

“Yeah.” He nodded, his voice unsteady. Rick looked at his sister.

“Parker?” She blinked but eventually nodded too.

“Just really wish I’d taken Dave up on the drink offer.” She joked, but no one laughed.

“Hershel?” Rick looked at the older man, whose face was unreadable. He couldn’t tell if he was angry or scared after seeing two men being shot. Eventually, after glancing over at Dave’s body behind the bar, Hershel nodded at him.

“Let’s head back.” Hershel said, and everyone slowly disbursed, Parker sticking close to her brother’s side and him gladly leading her towards the bar with a gentle hand on the small of her back. He could tell she was scared despite her earlier remark by the way her body was shaking and shivering, but he knew better than to bombard her with questions right now. He’d wait until she was back at the camp, where she didn’t have the stench of blood and piss in her nostrils. Rick took the opportunity to grab both Dave and Tony’s weapons, pocketing their ammo as he went. It wasn’t right, but they needed the guns more than they did now. As they approached the door, car lights came into view and created beams of yellow across the bar, and Rick pushed the others down into a crouch.

“Get down!” He whispered and leaned against the wall beside the front door, Hershel to his left underneath the window and the Rhee’s behind him with their guns to their chests. Parker held her breath as the car outside slowly came to a stop and the lights flickered off, leaving them all in complete darkness. She then realised how long they had been in the bar, as it was now night time. The world outside was quiet and still, but she knew it was more dangerous now than it had been before. Walkers seemed to get braver in the dark.

“Dave? Tony?” A voice called from outside, making the four of them stiffen.

“Are they even out here?” Another asked.

“I’m telling you man, I heard shots.” The first voice said and Rick and Parker shared a worried glance. She gulped and pressed her body closer to the wall, feeling Glenn’s arm against hers. They were both shaking now.

“Look, there’s cars here so there might be more of ‘em out here.” Another voice spoke up and Parker started to realise they may be completely screwed if anymore showed up. “We gotta get out of here.”

“Dave! Tony-”

“Shut up! Idiot! You wanna attract them? Just stay close, we’re gonna find them.”

The men started walking around on the steps leading up to the bar, slowly making their way across the porch, and Parker bit her lip as she noticed their shadows being cast through the window of the door, making her stomach flip. One of them walked right up to the door and tried to peer in, and Rick held onto his gun just a little bit tighter before the man was told to move away.

“What did I say? Stay close!” Someone ordered and the man wandered off. Minutes ticked by and after nothing seemed to happen, indicating the men had finally gone somewhere else, Rick stood up, peering out of the window ever so slightly. He then ducked back down and crawled over to the others that had huddled together, waiting to know what their next move was.

“Do you think they’re gone?” Parker asked, and Rick could only shrug.

“I don’t hear anything, but it’s hard to tell. I don’t think they went too far away.”

“Why won’t they leave?” Glenn hissed.

“Would you?” Hershel asked and Glenn bit his tongue.

“We can’t sit here any longer.” Rick said, occasionally glancing up at the window in case he saw something. “Let’s head out the back and make a run to the car.” Everyone nodded and Rick motioned for them to follow him, and they kept low to the ground before slowly inching their way to the centre of the bar. Suddenly, gunshots rang out from outside and they all scampered back to the windows, keeping their heads down.

“Shit.” Parker whispered and gripped her gun against her for comfort.

“What happened?” One of the voices from outside asked.

“Roamers. I nailed them.” Another said.

“They’ve disappeared, but their car is still there.” A third spoke up, referring to Dave and Tony. Parker looked at Tony’s body and grimaced, praying these men would just go away.

“I’ll clear those buildings, you guys get this one.” Everyone froze as footsteps came up the porch steps again and Parker felt sweat drip down her forehead as a shadow fell across the bar. Rick clicked the safety on his gun just as the man jogged towards the door and started to push it open. Almost instantly, Glenn jumped in front of it and slammed the door back with his hand, leaning against it and squeezing his eyes shut. Parker nearly yelped but Hershel held her shoulder to calm her down.

“Someone pushed that shut, someone’s in there.” One of the voices said. “Yo? Is someone in there?” Rick was starting to panic, Parker could tell, and watched him have a debate with his own mind before looking up at the door. “Yo, if someone’s in there we don’t want no trouble. We’re just looking for our friends.” Parker bit back a whimper and Hershel patted her shoulder, knowing she was trying to keep it together. The guilt was already starting to get to her.

“What do we do?” One of the men asked. “Knock down the door?”

“No, we don't know how many there are in there. Just relax.” His buddy replied. “We don’t want any trouble!” He repeated, raising his voice so they could all hear him clearly. “We’re just looking for our friends! If something happened, tell us. This place is crawling with corpses, if you helped us not get killed I’d appreciate it!”

Rick had a clear view of both bodies in the bar and ground his teeth. This was on him, he thought, then glanced at Parker. She had never looked so scared in her life, she never wanted any of this anyway. So he grimaced and looked over his shoulder at the door. This was all on him.

“They drew on us!” He shouted and Hershel shook his head, covering his face with his hand. Parker stared at Rick as if he had grown another head and Glenn just assumed this was how he was going to die.

“Dave and Tony in there?” The voice called out. “They alive?”

Parker shook her head at Rick, begging him not to make this worse, but he had already gone too far. There was no turning back now and they all knew it.

“No.”

The two men outside began debating with each other, one saying they should leave whilst the other was determined to stay and go inside.

“We should just go.”

“No! I’m not going back and explaining that Dave and Tony got shot by some assholes in a bar!”

“Your friends drew on us!” Rick hollered and Parker began shaking her head, muttering to herself that they were screwed. “They gave us no choice! I’m sure we’ve all lost enough people, done things we wish we didn’t have to but, it’s like that now, you know that!” Parker, Glenn and Hershel were all staring at Rick and hoping that whatever he was saying was working; would make these men go away. “So let’s just chalk this up to what it was. Wrong place, wrong-” Rick didn’t get to finish as bullets were shot through the windows, making the glass shatter over Glenn and Parker. Glenn jumped and hurled himself towards his sister, shielding her from the splinters and pieces of jagged glass before grabbing his gun. Rick jumped up and fired his pistol through the gaping hole in the door and turned to Glenn and his sister.

“Get out of here!” He yelled, firing again, and Glenn didn’t hesitate to drag Parker to her feet before pulling Hershel up too. Bullets followed them as they raced to the back of the bar and Rick did his best to hold them off, shooting his Python at whoever he could see moving outside in the darkness. But soon he had to duck down to reload, and one bullet came a little too close to Parker’s head, making Glenn push her to the ground behind a table. Hershel ran around a corner in front of them and held his gun to his chest, getting ready to fire if need be. After a moment or two, the bullets stopped, and the four survivors turned to look at each other, making sure they were all still in one piece. Parker held onto her brother’s hand with her assault rifle in the other, and prayed to God, for the first time in her life, that they would all make it out alive.

***  
Daryl’s fire had been burning for a few hours now, and he was getting ready to take off the roasting squirrels he had stuck onto spits. Moving away was a good choice, he knew that even if the others didn’t see the point, because now he was alone again. And it was better that way, for everyone not just himself. He worked better on his own, only having to worry about one person instead of a whole group. And now that he didn’t have to look for the girl, he could focus on taking care of himself. Something he should have been doing a long time ago. Since Merle left Atlanta, since he abandoned him again, Daryl had felt the need to be around others but now he realised how stupid that had been. He shouldn’t have gotten close to any of them, and especially not Parker. He grunted at the mere thought of her name. She was trouble, he knew that now. She had been too emotional for him, too dependant. He couldn’t have someone clinging to him like that, always wanting to help out and be in his personal space. It was too much.

He grabbed a squirrel and propped the spit up against the log he was sat on, letting the meat cool down before ripping bits off and shoving them into his mouth. The smell of cooking meat and smoke comforted him, made him feel alive again. Like a man.

“You’re a real man, Daryl.”

He paused, hearing her voice in his head again, speaking those words that no one had ever said to him before. A real man. What, because he brought her to Hershel? Daryl didn’t save her, he didn’t do anything except carry her to the farmhouse, so why was she thanking him? He shook his head. She was getting into his thoughts again and he wouldn’t let her. He didn’t want her to be on his mind anymore, so he carried on eating until he was full and then prodded at the fire, making sure it didn’t go down. He needed the extra warmth; it was colder tonight than it had been in days. He was just about to sharpen some more makeshift arrows when he heard footsteps and he groaned.

“Parker, I told you to leave me the hell-” He turned, only to frown at the sight of Carol jogging towards him. He felt his face flush. He had just assumed it was her, or thought it would be her at least...so much for not letting her get into his head.

“We can’t find Lori anywhere!” She panted, running up to his little camp. “And the others aren’t back yet.” Daryl turned back to the fire and moved some logs over to let the flames breath some more.

“Dumb bitch must have gone out lookin’ for ‘em.” He said calmly, not wanting to think about Lori. She had called him selfish, thrown all his hard work into finding Sophia back into his face, when she was the one who hadn’t done anything in weeks. She disregarded his hip injury...Parker’s head and partially missing ear.

“What?” Carol asked with a frown and Daryl spared a glance at her.

“Yeah, she asked me to go.” He replied. “Told her I was done being an errand boy.”

“And you didn’t say anything?” Carol asked, her tone higher in pitch and making Daryl squirm. He hated when women get like that, all fussy and whiny. He just wanted to be left alone. Carol stared at him for a few seconds before giving up and walking away. But she then noticed his tent, the one that had once been opposite Parker’s in camp. Parker. If she was here, she could get Daryl to come back. She had too. He seemed to only really listen to her, and he had gotten to know her since she had been shot. He had actually tried with her. No one else, not yet anyway. Carol turned back around and marched over to him, determined to make him  
understand.

“Don’t do this.” She said. Daryl looked up. “Please?” Still nothing. “I’ve already lost my girl.” Carol said sternly. Daryl slammed the stick down and stood up, glaring at her.

“Yeah, that wasn’t my problem neither.” He growled. He walked around Carol and was about to head into his tent when she spoke up again.

“Parker’s with them.” He froze mid step. “She went with Rick and Glenn to get Hershel, and they haven’t come back.” Carol clenched her fists and stood up a little straighter. “She’s out there, in that town, and we don’t know if they’re alive or dead. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”

Daryl felt his chest ache and he was starting to get nauseous, but he slipped into his tent without another word and sat in his cot, waiting for Carol’s footsteps to disappear back to camp. When they finally did, Daryl punched the ground at his feet.

“You don’t fool me, Daryl Dixon.”

***  
Rick quickly reloaded, pocketing the empty bullet shells, before turning to the door. “Hey!” He yelled, wanting to get their attackers attention. “We all know this is not gonna end well! There’s nothing in it for any of us! You guys just...just back off, no one else gets hurt!” No one replied, but Parker and Glenn turned at the sound of something moving in the back room. Hershel, who was closest, raised his gun at the door in defence as Parker looked at her brother for help.

Glenn looked back at Rick over his shoulder, who nodded at the door. Glenn gulped but slowly stood up, taking the shotgun with him, and running to the back of the bar. He slowly opened the exit door and stuck the barrel of the gun through it first before peering out. He felt something tap his shoulder and he turned his head to see his sister with her rifle, a stern look on her face.

“I got your back.” She whispered, Glenn barely hearing her. “Go.” He nodded and kept creeping forward, searching the back room for any of the men from outside. It was large and full of barrels and boxes that were piled high with bottles and glasses for the bar, some even having some packets of chips and peanuts inside. If they weren’t being gunned down, Parker might have taken a moment to steal a few. There was a small staircase leading down and Glenn stepped onto it, wincing as it creaked under his weight. He carried on moving, his sister with her gun raised high right behind him. Adrenaline had started to kick in and she was on red alert, not wanting to let anything happen to her brother. She was pushing aside her fear and guilt and focusing on the thing that mattered most to her, and there was no way she was letting him die over some trigger happy assholes with creepy, alcoholic friends.

Glenn moved quietly through the room, scanning it entirely before reaching the middle of it and looking back at his sister, nodding for her to follow him closely. She stood back to back with him before they both froze at the sound of a bottle being rolled across the floor somewhere up ahead.

“Shit!” A voice muttered and Glenn looked at the back door that led outside into the alley behind the bar. They both then watched in horror as a shadow walked up to the window and the handle started to twist. Glenn then cocked his gun and fire, shattering the glass and revealing no one stood outside, meaning they moved out of the way just in time. There was movement from inside the bar and Parker turned around, raising her gun.

“Glenn! Parker!” Rick called out.

“W-we’re alright! We’re alright.” Glenn replied, his voice slightly unsteady. His eyes wandered back to the door and he rushed forward, bracing himself against the wall and cocking the gun again. Parker crouched down and ran to the other side of it, closest to the broken glass and kept her head pressed against the wall, not wanting to be seen. Glenn turned so his body was facing the door and he was about to head outside when he heard someone coming up behind him. He span around and pointed the gun up, before jumping at the realisation at who it was. Hershel raised his hands in mock surrender and Glenn sighed, lowering the shotgun.

“Sorry.” He whispered. Hershel nodded and looked at Parker.

“We’re okay.” She said.

“He wants you to try for the car.” Hershel said quietly, focusing on Glenn.

“Try?” Glenn breathed.

“You’ll try, and succeed.” Hershel said with a nod. “I’ll cover you.”

“We both will.” Parker corrected him. Glenn let out a laugh.

“This is a great plan.” He said sarcastically.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to you.” Parker said, walking up to them.

“It’s not me I’m worried about.” Glenn said harshly and turned to her, his eyes burning with something Parker didn’t recognise. She swallowed.

“I’m fine. Just do as Rick says.” Glenn hesitated but shook his head and walked over to the door. Hershel and Parker braced themselves against the walls with their guns ready as Glenn pushed the doors open slowly, stepping out into the cool night air. Parker shivered as the breeze nipped at her bare arms, but kept her eyes focused on her the area's her brother couldn’t see, as did Hershel.

Glenn carefully tiptoed out of the bar and started down the alley way, looking around him for any sign of walkers or people, before an empty glass shattered beside him, making him duck down and yelp. Parker turned to see a tall, dark man come out from the shadows, pistol raised and aiming at Glenn and he managed to get another shot in, sending Glenn to the ground, before she jumped out and fired the rifle at him. The bullet only grazed his arm however so Hershel took the next shot, sending the man tumbling to the ground clutching at his shoulder. Parker turned to look at her brother, only seeing his legs sprawled out on the pavement. Her heart dropped.

“Glenn!” She cried, forgetting the danger they were in, and ran to him instantly. Hershel kept being back up and had his gun trained on the man on the ground who was now groaning and whimpering in pain, clutching his wounds. Rick ran out from inside the bar and came to Hershel’s side.

“What happened?” He asked in a hurry.

“He fired.” Then Hershel looked at the boy on the ground, his sister crouched over him. He couldn’t see either of their faces due to the dumpster blocking his view, but he assumed the worst. “He must have hit Glenn. It doesn’t look like he’s moving.” Rick’s head snapped in their direction and he started to cautiously make his way over to the twins, holding his pistol and Tony's shotgun in both hands.

“You hit?” He called out softly. “Parker, is he hurt?” When the two of them came into view, Rick saw Parker crouched beside her brother, protectively and realised Glenn was alive, and thankfully okay. Glenn shook his head once he saw Rick.

“We’re okay.” Parker said with a nod. “He scared me but...we’re okay.”

“What happened?” Rick asked and Glenn looked away, not being able to meet his eyes. Rick crouched on the other side of them, glancing over his shoulder and seeing the car he had driven just a few feet away. “It’s alright, the car is right there.” He said. “We’re almost home.” He turned to see Glenn shaking, just like his sister after shooting Tony, and licked his lips.

“You good?”

“I’m good.” Glenn said with a curt nod and Rick knew that was the best he would get. The man Hershel had shot was still whining in pain, creating a lot of unwanted noise, and Parker stared at him before grabbing her gun and getting ready to move. Rick then pulled Glenn up and turned to the car.

“Let’s move.” They all stood up and ran, only to duck as bullets rained down from somewhere above him. Parker looked up to see a young boy, not much younger than her, firing at them. The trio hurried back behind the dumpster and Parker bit the inside of her cheek.

“There’s a guy on the roof of the Pharmacy.” She said and pointed, Rick following her line of vision. He saw him too and sneered. Suddenly, a large 4X4 pulled up in front of it and screeched to a halt just underneath where the boy was stood.

“Let’s get out of here!” A voice from inside the car yelled. “There’s roamers all over the place, we gotta get out of here!”

“What about Shaun?” The boy yelled down.

“They got him, we gotta go, they’re everywhere!”

“We’re leaving him?” The boy cried out, clearly shocked at that thought. The driver of the car didn’t seem to care however.

“Jump!” He ordered. The boy then ran across the roof and hoisted himself down onto a ledge before jumping across to the building next to it. He hit the roof, hard, and stumbled before falling off the edge and hitting something metal. Parker flinched at the sound of his ear piercing screams. Glenn shook his head sadly.

“He won’t make it.” He said. The car then revved ahead of them.

“I’ve gotta go!” The driver called out as the young boy screamed for him to help him, to not leave him alone. “I’m sorry!” The car then pulled away without a moment’s hesitation and it was out of sight in seconds. The boy kept crying and yelling for somebody, anybody, to come and help him and Rick stood up.

“Get Hershel.” He told the twins and ran out behind the dumpster towards the boy. Glenn stared at him before doing as he asked. Parker just shook her head.

“That man has a goddamn death wish.” She mumbled before making sure both men were following her before taking off after Rick. Walkers started coming thick and fast, seemingly cutting off all of their exits as they made their way to the car. It was parked just outside the building beside the Pharmacy and as Parker was about to open the back door, she saw Rick in the alley way where the boy had fallen. She couldn’t believe her eyes as she saw Rick standing in front of the boy who was lying on a metal dumpster, leaning on his elbows and crying as one of his legs had pierced through a metal spike on the top of a gate. She felt her stomach turn and she tried to keep its contents inside of her as she saw blood pouring out of the boys calve. “Jesus christ…”

“Rick, we have to go, now!” Hershel said as he and Glenn ran up, only to be met with the situation of the boy’s very destroyed leg. “I’m sorry son.” Hershel said but Rick shook his head.

“No, no please don’t leave me!” The boy begged them, tears streaming down his face.

“We can't just leave him here!” Rick spat.

“He was just shooting at us!” Glenn cried.

“He’s just a kid!”

Parker turned and saw a herd of walkers approaching them from the end of town.

“Guys!” She said and swore under her breath before firing at them. She wasn’t the best shot, she had barely used a gun before today, but she managed to hit some in the legs and make them fall down, slowing the others to give them more time.

“This place is crawling with walkers!” Glenn shouted.

“We can’t just leave him!” Rick repeated.

“Rick!” Parker yelled at him and he saw that she was shooting, making him run a hand through his hair. Hershel inspected the wound, making the boy cry out even more.

“The spike went clean through, there’s no way we can get the leg off in one piece.” Glenn and Rick then both grabbed the boys ankle and pulled upwards, making him scream and writhe in pain.

“He’s going to attract more, do something!” Parker shouted, firing at more walkers and actually managing to hit some in the head. The boy hollered and Rick pulled his gun on him.

“Shut up or I will shoot you!” He ordered and the boy tried not to cry as much. Hershel took him to one side as Parker ceased her fire, not wanting to get any more unwanted attention from the dead and turned to the men.

“That may be the answer.” Hershel said to Rick. “We’re not going to get that leg off without tearing the muscle to shreds. He certainly can't run, he may bleed out." Glenn tried moving the boy's leg off the spike again and that made him splutter in pain.

“Glenn!” His sister scolded and he shrugged before hastily apologising to the boy and telling him to be quiet.

“Maybe we should put him down.” Hershel said sadly and Rick stared at him, Parker doing the same. Was this really how things were going to be? She looked at the boy with fear in her eyes and shook her head as he stared back, clearly hearing what Hershel said.

“No, please don’t kill me! I-I-” He pleaded.

“I’m so sorry…” Parker said and looked away.

“No, no, no don’t!” The boy cried, sitting up and looking at each of them. “PLEASE!”

“I don’t want to see anymore killing!” Hershel said, pointing at the boy. “But this is cruel.”

“Can’t we just take the leg off?” Glenn asked desperately, but that didn’t do anything to help the boy calm down.

“Oh god, oh god!” He cried, leaning back on the dumpster. “No, please don’t do that!”

“Shut it!” Parker hissed, raising her gun at him and feeling some sort of power take over her. It hadn’t been that long ago that she crying over shooting a man, yet here she was ready to shoot an even younger kid than herself. The apocalypse was doing a number on her emotions, and her morals.

“That hatchet still in the car?” Rick asked and Glenn shook his head. The boy reached out to try and stop them but Parker raised her gun higher.

“Please, don’t cut my leg off!” He said.

“Will this cut through the bone?” Rick asked, flipping open his Swiss Army knife, making the boy go pale.

“I’d have to sever the ligaments below the knee.” Hershel said, spouting off medical information that Parker quite frankly couldn't be bothered to take in. She wanted to get home, now, as the walkers were starting to get closer again. Hershel started to take off his white shirt, leaving an undershirt to keep him warm, and wrapped it around the boy’s leg like a tourniquet. Parker moved out of the way as Rick held the boy down against the dumpster and Glenn grabbed a stick off of the ground for him to bite on. Hershel tightened the shirt around his calve and Parker looked away, not wanting to see this. She instead focused on the walkers approaching them and let out a breath before raising her gun and firing a few more rounds, taking some down. As more started to join, Glenn ran to her side and helped her, firing the shotgun at least three times before turning to the others.

“Guys! Walkers!” He warned and cocked the gun. Parker suddenly heard Rick fire his own gun and she turned to see walkers coming out from behind the alley, dragging themselves towards the gunshots.

“We have to go right now!” Parker shouted and turned to Hershel, grabbing his shoulder. Glenn followed her and Rick looked down at the crying boy.

“I can’t hold them off, Hershel, do it now!”

“There’s no time!” The older man cried.

“Rick!” Parker cried desperately as more walkers came out through the alley towards them. As Glenn dragged Hershel towards the car, Parker watched as Rick turned to the boy and did the only thing he could think of. He grabbed his leg and pulled it straight off the spike. They had never heard anyone scream so loud.

***  
With the others still not back yet, Carol had nothing better to do but try and talk to Daryl again. She was fed up with his attitude; running off and pushing everyone else away. It wasn’t healthy, she knew that better than anyone. His campfire was still burning and she moved towards it quietly, not seeing him anywhere. Then she saw the squirrels hanging from the tree, all neatly laid out in a line, and she stared at them. She then noticed something else. It was a shirt, a shirt that she had never seen Daryl wear before, and it was hanging up on the line freshly washed. She frowned at it and took it in her hands then turned it over. Her eyes widened at the familiar white ATLANTA STATE logo stamped on the front; it was Parker’s.

“What are you doin’?” Daryl spat from behind her, making her jump and almost drop the oversized shirt. He looked at it before snatching it from her hands and holding it at his side.

“Keeping an eye on you.” She said with a hint of uncertainty in her voice.

“Ain't you a peach.” Daryl mocked.

“I’m not gonna let you pull away.” Carol said bravely. “You’ve earned your place.” He snorted and began to walk away, but Carol wasn’t giving up so easily. “Why do you have that?” Daryl huffed.

“Just go away, will ya?” He snapped.

“That’s Parker’s shirt.” Carol said, moving closer to him. “She’s been looking for it for days. Did you wash it for her?” Daryl spun around and glared at her.

“If you spent half your time worrying about your daughter's business instead of stickin’ your nose into everybody’s else's she’d still be alive!” He said harshly, storming back over to her and getting in her face. She didn’t flinch, if anything she didn’t seem fazed by his words.

“Go ahead.” She said gently. Daryl blinked.

“Go ahead and what?” She didn’t say anything. “Bitch, just go!” He snapped, pointing at the other camp. “I don’t want you here!” Carol still didn’t move and Daryl was starting to lose his patience. “You’re a real piece of work lady.” He said, pointing a finger at her. “What, you gonna make this about my Daddy or some crap like that? Pft, yeah, you know jack. You’re afraid.” He accused, licking his lips. “You’re afraid ‘cos you’re all alone! You got no husband, no daughter. You don’t know what to do with yourself. And you ain’t my problem, Sophia wasn’t mine!” He shouted. “All you gotta do is keep an eye on her!” He stepped forward and Carol flinched on instinct, letting out a small whimper.

Her face was still stone cold, however, and Daryl realised what she must have thought he was going to do. He stumbled slightly but shook his head, keeping a brave face. They stared at each other for a long time before Carol looked at his hand that had a death grip on Parker’s shirt.

“Why do you have that, Daryl?” She asked again. Daryl’s eyes twitched and she saw him swallow. He shook his head and turned around.

“Just go home.” He muttered and slipped into his tent. Once again doing exactly what Parker said he did; ran away from his problems.


	10. Daisies

The next morning, Shane, Daryl, T-Dog and Andrea were gearing up to go after the others. They had been gone all night, and after Lori came back after having an accident on the road, they feared the worst. They hoped that the group would come back that night, but they had no such luck. Maggie and Patricia were forced to resort to putting Beth on an IV to keep her stable, her condition not getting any better, and they all knew that without Hershel things would go from bad to worse. 

Daryl stood at the boot of Shane’s car, sipping on some water, as they others all packed extra guns and ammo into the back, along with some supplies in case things went haywire. He looked out to the dirt track leading to the town and in his head he thought back to the last time he saw Parker. She was hot headed and pissed at him, and he was frustrated that that was his last memory of her. Not that he cared that she was upset with him, it was more like he wanted to have the last word. Instead, he had left, and he hadn’t even known she had taken off with her brother and Rick until Carol had told him. Now she hadn’t come back, and he was still pissed off with her.

She shouldn’t have gone, he thought to himself as Shane nodded at him that they were ready to head off. She should have just stayed put and not put herself in danger for once. But she always wanted to help out, especially when Glenn was involved, and there wasn’t much you could say to persuade her to do otherwise. Daryl scoffed. Stubborn bitch. 

“Guys.” Andrea’s voice brought him back to reality, and he turned to see her staring off into the distance. Everyone looked up at the sound of tires running across the track and they all watched as Carol’s old Cherokee rounded a corner and came into view. There was a split second when Daryl’s shoulders sagged in relief, but then he remembered he was supposed to be angry and went back to frowning. The car was travelling practically at full speed, and they stared as it screeched to a halt up at the entrance to the farm house. Rick stepped out just as the rest of the group ran out of the house, Carl being the first one to smile.

“Dad!” He shouted and ran to him, letting his Father hug him to his chest. Lori walked over and pulled Rick and her son into her embrace, thanking the heavens that he was alright. Carol grinned as Parker hopped out of the car and hurried to her, pulling her into a hug and letting out a laugh.

“Thank god you’re all okay.” She whispered and Parker smiled into her shoulder. Parker then felt something hit her side and she looked down, peeling herself from Carol, to see Carl hugging her hip. She chuckled.

“Hey, kid.” She said lovingly and bent down to hug him properly, cradling his head. “You okay?”

“Just glad you and Dad are back.” He said and she kissed his cheek, letting him go. Parker turned to her brother to see Maggie run towards him, completely ignoring her father. Parker frowned, but heard a grunt from behind her and she spun around to see Daryl. He was holding onto his crossbow and had shoved his other hand into his pocket. He was just looking at her, a vacant expression on his face, and she didn’t know how to react.

“Hi.” She said eventually, letting the others all have a small reunion. Daryl nodded at her.

“You hurt?”

“No. You okay?” He shrugged. She remembered what she thought in the car on the way to the town, after Glenn told her and Rick about Maggie. She remembered the way Daryl made her stomach flip and her heart beat faster, and as she stared at him she realised that was happening right now. But now wasn’t the time, because she heard Randall grunt from inside the car and she sighed, turning to glare at him. T-Dog then came up from behind her and frowned, seeing the boy inside the car who had a bandage over his eyes.

“Who the hell is that?” He asked, pointing at him and everyone turned to look. Parker rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. 

“That’s Randall.” Glenn said. The group stared at him before Rick and Glenn moved towards the door, yanking it open and grabbing the boy. He was half asleep, having passed out from the pain of his leg that Hershel had bandaged up for now. They then asked Daryl and Shane to help pick him up and the four men carefully carried him towards the barn. Parker watched and then looked up at the house. Hershel had disappeared inside, no doubt going to treat Beth, and she wandered up to the front door, Carol behind her. 

“I’m sure you’ve got questions.” Parker said over her shoulder. “Let’s just let them sort him out before the interrogation begins.” She slumped into a dining chair and ran a hand through her hair. Carol bit her lip and Parker realised she was holding something.

“I found your shirt.” Carol said and handed over her brother’s College shirt. Parker smiled instantly and brought it close to her chest.

“Oh my god, thank you.” She breathed. “Where did you find it?”

“Daryl had it.” Parker blinked at her and then laughed, loudly. When she saw Carol wasn’t laughing, she slowly started to frown. “That...that wasn’t a joke?”

“He had it in his camp. I think...I think he washed it for you.”

“Daryl washed my shirt?” She asked, holding it at arm's length and inspecting it. She then smelt something on it and grimaced. “Barely, I can smell the squirrel from here. Why would he do that?”

“I asked him that myself.” Carol said, sitting at the table and ignoring the others that started to file in and take their seats. “He didn’t say why just...got all defensive on me again.” Parker nodded, not being able to do much else, before hanging the shirt over her chair and leaning against it. Weird. After a few more minutes of waiting, the men returned from the barn, saying they had chained Randall - their new prisoner, according to Dale - to a pipe in the shed beside it. 

“I still can’t believe you brought someone, a stranger, home with you.” Shane said shaking his head.

“We couldn’t just leave him behind.” Rick said. “He would have bled out. If he lived that long.”

“He was caught in a bad end of town.” Glenn spoke up, then saw Maggie looking at him and he turned away. Parker noticed this and glanced between the two of them. Why was he so on edge all of a sudden? She thought he’d be overjoyed to see Maggie again, but it was like the complete opposite. 

“What do we do with him?” Andrea asked just as Hershel walked into the room. 

“I’ve repaired his calf muscle as best I can.” He said, wiping his hands on a kitchen towel. “But he’ll probably have nerve damage, won’t be on his feet for at least a week.”

“When he is, we’ll give him a canteen, take him out to the main road and send him on his way.” Rick said. The front door opened but no one really bothered to take notice, except for Parker. She saw Daryl walk through and she clutched the shirt tighter to her chest. He saw it in her hand and looked sheepishly at the floor, knowing Carol had obviously explained to her where she found it. He had been furious that morning when he saw it missing from the line after he had hung it back up again. He just wished Carol had left him alone, now he looked like some creep who went around stealing women’s clothes. It wasn’t like that at all, but right now only he knew that.

“Isn’t that the same as leaving him for the walkers?” Andrea asked, and Parker watched with steady eyes as Daryl made his way over to the corner of the room furthest away from her, not meeting her gaze. They would talk later, they both thought, but for now they had something more important to discuss.

“He’ll have a fighting chance.” Rick shrugged.

“So we’re just gonna let him go?” Shane asked, shaking his head. “He knows where we are.”

“He was blindfolded the whole ride up here, he doesn’t know a thing. It’s not like he's a threat anymore.” Parker said, a little ruder than she intended, but Shane wasn’t exactly her best friend at the moment. She was still pissed about him shooting up the barn, especially since he seemed so indifferent to it now. 

“Not a threat? How many were there?” Shane asked glaring at her. “You killed three of their men, you took one of them hostage, but they just ain’t gonna come looking for us?”

“They abandoned him!” Parker argued, turning in her chair to look right in his eyes. “They don’t give a shit what happens to him now, they can’t!”

“And you know that for sure?” He raised an eyebrow and she bit her tongue. Carol rested a hand on her arm and she sighed, sitting in her chair properly again. “That’s what I thought.”

“I think we should still post a guard, just in case.” T-Dog suggested, trying to diffuse the tension.

“He’s out cold right now.” Hershel pointed out. “Will be for hours.”

“You know, I’m gonna go get him some flowers and candy.” Shane said sarcastically, pushing his way through the group. He scoffed. “Look at this folks! We’re back in fantasy land.” Parker stood up, not being able to keep her anger for Shane under control anymore, but Carol pulled at her hand just as Shane turned around. He cocked his head and smirked at her. “What, you wanna say something, little girl?” He asked, taking a few steps closer to her. 

Parker stood her ground. “There’s a lot I want to say to you.” She hissed. Shane scoffed.

“Like what? Take your best shot.” Parker’s hand twitched, as if wanting to reach for a gun, but Shane saw this and got toe to toe with her, breathing right down her neck. Everyone around them held their breaths. “Come on, Parker. Seeing as you think you’re so tough because you shot a man in the head.” Her eyes widened. Rick must have told him, how else would he find out?

“Enough, man.” Daryl grunted, pulling Shane by the shoulder so he was no longer in Parker’s face. Parker stared at him as Shane glared at Daryl before pushing his hand away and scoffing one last time before once again trying to leave. Hershel was having none of it however.

“You know we haven’t even dealt with what you did at my barn yet.” He snapped, making Shane stop mid step. “Let me make this perfectly clear once and for all. This is my farm, now I wanted you gone, Rick talked me out of it but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. So do us both a favour, keep your mouth shut. And stay away from Parker.” Shane locked eyes with Hershel for a few seconds before shrugging, knowing he was defeated, and walking out the front door. Parker was still glued to the floor, glaring at where Shane had just been, then let out a heavy sigh. Carol stood, turning her head so she could look at her face properly.

“Are you alright?” She asked, but Parker just gritted her teeth and pushed her away, running out the back door through the kitchen. Parker felt her feet take her all the way past their camp, not wanting to be close to where Shane might have wandered off too, and ended up sprinting across the field until she was halfway between her camp and Daryl’s, before collapsing to her knees in the grass. It took a second before the tears started pouring from her eyes and she let out soft sobs, not being able to hold it in any longer. If Shane hadn’t brought up what happened at the bar, maybe she could have held back the feeling of guilt, of disgust, for what she had done. Tony was bad, she knew that, but she had still killed somebody and that was too much for someone like her to handle.

She never intended to kill, even in this world, but now that had all come crashing down on her. She threw her hand up to cover her mouth as the sobs came out louder, not wanting to attract too much attention in case any walkers from the woods could hear. They had to be careful now, they had no idea what was in those woods. Dead or alive.

Eventually, she managed to calm down. She was just left with the deep breathing and the aching pain in her stomach of feeling sick. She sat Indian style in the grass and picked at the tiny daisies growing around her, knitting them together to make a chain. It was something she used to do in her mother's garden growing up, putting them on her brothers head to annoy him. 

“Parker?” She barely glanced over her shoulder before she saw Carl walking up to her, his Dad’s hat still on his head and a sad look on his face. She smiled and wiped her eyes.

“Hey, kid.” She said. “What are you doing all the way up here?”

“Looking for you.” He said. He then noticed the daisy chains and frowned. “What are you doing?”

She laughed at the little chain she had made and shrugged. “I don’t really know.” She bit her lip, feeling it tremble, and Carl must have noticed it too because he sat down in front of her. He didn’t say anything for a while, and Parker was thankful that he was such a smart kid already. He could read people like a book.

“Did you really do it?” He asked quietly. She looked up through her lashes and then nervously tucked some hair behind her ear. She hesitated but nodded. 

“Yeah.”

“Did you have to?”

“If I didn’t...something bad might have happened.” She explained.

Carl frowned. “What did happen?”

“These guys came into the bar we found Hershel in. Just some guys, never met them before. They seemed...okay at first. Then they started asking about where we lived, who we were with. They found out about the farm.” Carl stiffened.

“Then what?” He asked. Parker looked off into the distance. 

“They talked for a while. Then one drew a gun on your Dad. But Rick he...he shot first. He saved himself. Then the other guy got his gun out and I panicked you know, I thought Rick might have made the shot himself but I didn’t want to take the risk so I-” She paused, the words getting stuck in her throat. “I...I…”

“So you shot him.” Carl finished for her. She hung her head.

“Yeah. I shot him.” 

“Good.” She looked up in shock but Carl’s face was dead serious.

“What?”

“You did the right thing. He was going to draw on my Dad but you stopped him. You saved him, Parker.” She watched his eyes, they were just as blue as his Dad’s, but they were still different. Rick’s were colder, but Carl’s were warm and for some reason Parker felt like she could tell him anything in that moment. Even if he was just a little kid. 

“I still killed somebody.” She whispered. “I’ve never...Carl, I don’t ever want you to have to do that. Okay? It’s not a good thing.”

“It is when you have no other choice, when someone you care about is about to get hurt.” He argued, scowling a little. “You can’t be afraid of it. Own it. You saved my Dad’s life, you did a good thing.” Carl looked down at the daisy chain and then scooted forward. “How do you make one of these anyway?” Parker felt a big smile tug at her lips and she felt the anger start to melt away. 

“You take a daisy, and use your thumbnail to piece a hole through the stem, see?” She demonstrated and Carl watched intently before copying her, grinning as he got it on the first try. “Then take another and loop it through so the daisy head rests against the stem, and repeat. See, easy.” Carl laughed as she then placed her daisy chain around her head like a crown. As she watched him grab more and more flowers, Parker realised something about the small kid in front of her that she had never thought about until that moment.

Carl Grimes was the last real hope they had, and he was going to beat this world one day at a time.

***

The next day, Rick and Shane took Randall out of the his makeshift cell in the shed and drove off to leave him on one of the roads like Rick suggested. Parker knew they’d probably fight again, they always did, but at least Randall was off the property. Whenever she walked past the shed and heard him wail or shuffle around she remembered that he was apart of a group that could potentially endanger them all. They could come for him at any time, that is if they actually cared about him enough to look for him. 

Parker contemplated it all in her tent, lying back on her cot and looking out of the small, screen window. However the thoughts left her the moment she saw a familiar pair of boots walk past and a crossbow hanging from a hand. She jumped up, threw her boots on and clambered out of her tent. He hadn’t been down in hours, staying as far away from the main camp as he could, so she hadn’t had a chance to talk to him. Parker scanned the area before seeing him walk up the hill a few meters away holding some rabbits over his shoulder. He’d been out hunting again. That’s all he seemed to do nowadays; hunt and sulk in his tent. 

“Hey!” She called, jogging over to him. Daryl clearly heard her, he turned his head, but he deliberately kept on walking. “Hey, Daryl!” Parker grabbed his shoulder, only for him to flinch and pull away instantly.

“The hell you want?” He spat and she rolled her eyes.

“Don’t start with me.” She said. “I want to talk to you.” He huffed.

“‘Bout what?” 

“My shirt. I wanna know why you had it.”

“Got it back, didn’t ya? What else is there.” He turned to walk away but Parker jumped in front of him, making him stumble slightly. “The hell-”

“Answer me.” She ordered, her voice sounding a lot stronger than she intended and she felt her shoulders straighten out proudly. Standing up to Daryl gave her some weird power trip, seeing as he was so moody and angry all the time it was nice to get the upper hand every so often.  
Daryl looked down at her, studying her face, before sighing and looking away.

“After you got shot, you lost blood. A lot of it.” He said. “It was everywhere, on me and all over your clothes. Carol and Lori they...changed you.” He seemed to go pink at that and Parker kept in a smirk. “When you were lying there on the third night, nobody had washed your things so...I did.” That made her cock her head to the side.

“Wait, what?” She asked and he looked down at his feet.

“I-I just wanted something to do, alright? I still couldn’t hunt ‘cos of my hip and I had nothin’ better to do so I washed your stuff. Wasn’t hard. Besides, didn't want your brother to have to do that. He was going through enough already seein' you lie there.” She blinked up at him and he grunted under her gaze. “Just, forgot to give it back after you woke up. M’sorry, alright?”  
Parker didn’t say anything and Daryl began to panic. Did that come out creepy? He didn’t think it was creepy, but then again what business did he have washing a lady’s shirt for her? It wasn’t like people considered him to be a gentleman. Then he heard something he hadn’t heard in days. Parker’s laugh. In fact, she was hysterical, gripping her side and trying to cover her mouth. He just stood and stared at her. “What’s so funny?” He demanded.

“Shit, sorry.” She tried to get her breathing back to normal but failed, giggling into her palm. Daryl groaned. “I’m sorry! I just did not expect washing it to actually be the reason.”

“Yeah well. Why else would I take your shirt?” He said gruffly. Parker shrugged.

“I don’t know, maybe you took it because you needed something to remind you of me? Because you know, you clearly love me that much.” He scoffed.

“Stop.” He started to walk away but Parker grinned and followed him, clinging to his arm just to annoy him that little bit more.

“You didn’t deny it!” She said in a sing-song voice and Daryl growled.

“Will you let go of me?” Parker laughed again and skipped alongside Daryl, making him shake his head in disappointment. “Christ, woman.” He muttered.

Not too far off, Carol watched them from her seat beside the campfire and smiled, chuckling to herself. Across from her, Glenn slowly crawled out of his tent, yawning loudly, and stretched his arms up. He then noticed the shit eating grin on Carol’s face and he smiled.

“What are you laughing at?” He asked and she quickly looked away.

“Oh, nothing.” She said innocently and Glenn just shrugged, too tired to care. Carol went back to looking at Parker and Daryl as they made their way to his camp. Even if she wasn’t happy anymore, at least there were two people that could be. 

Parker eventually let go of his arm, much to Daryl’s relief, and looked around his camp. She hadn’t been up here yet, only seeing it from a distance, and took in the wire attached to two trees that hung like a washing line. Except it held up squirrels, birds and rabbits instead of laundry. There was a fire pit in the centre and a stack of bricks that had been left over from some construction work of Hershel’s, giving Daryl something to sit on as well as leave his makeshift arrows against. His tent was made next to the stack of bricks and it was zipped up so she couldn’t see inside, but she assumed it wasn’t filled with very much. Daryl always did travel pretty light. The last thing she seemed to notice however was his motorbike and she smiled at it. She was still in awe that he managed to keep it so pristine and perfect, even during the apocalypse. She wandered over to it and gently touched one of the handles and ran her hand across the cold leather seat. Daryl watched from where he was leaning against the bricks and raised an eyebrow.

“You done?” He asked and she turned, still smiling. He tried to ignore the fact his stomach was in knots whenever she smiled, but it was becoming increasingly difficult the more he saw it. This feeling he had whenever Parker was around was starting to become worryingly more prominent, and trying to suppress it was making Daryl’s head hurt, but he didn’t know what else to do about it. Other than the obvious of course, but he’d rather get shot in the hip again. Opening up wasn’t one of his strong suits.

“Think you’ll ever let me ride it?” Daryl stared at her with wide eyes, his mind wandering to places it shouldn’t have.

“Ride what?” He asked slowly. Parker snorted.

“Your bike? I mean, I’ve never been on before but it can’t be that difficult, right?” Daryl was dumbstruck for a moment before clearing his throat.

“Uh, yeah. I mean no, no you ain’t ridin’ it. I don't let anyone ride it, ‘cept me and Merle.” Parker’s smile dropped slightly and Daryl kind of wished it would come back.

“Do you think you’ll find him again?” She asked, stepping away from the bike and over to the ire, prodding some of the logs with the toe of her combat boot. Daryl crossed his arms.

“Merle? Dunno. Maybe.” He said with a shrug. 

“You’re not worried about him?” 

“He can take care of himself. Always has.” Parker became intrigued and sat down on one of the logs at the fire, resting her elbows on her knees and looking up at him. 

“Tell me something about yourself.” She said suddenly. 

“No.” 

“Oh come on.” She said, smiling again, and Daryl inwardly cursed himself for feeling fuzzy the second her lips tugged upwards. “Some stupid story from your childhood or something you want to do, anything.” Daryl groaned but placed himself down on another log opposite her.

“If I’m talkin’ ‘bout my childhood I’ll need a drink.”

“It’s not even two-thirty.” Parker scolded.

“It’s the end of the world. I don’t care.” Daryl said and pulled a hip flask from his leather jacket. She smirked at him. 

“You steal that?” 

“I ain’t no thief.” He said with a scowl and she raised her hands up. “Besides, I took it when the world went to hell. Don’t count as stealin’ no more does it.” Parker shrugged.

“Guess it doesn’t.” She then watched him take a swig and got an idea. “Hey, wanna let me have some?”

“Not really.” He said. 

“Please?” She batted her lashes at him and he grimaced.

“Ain’t you got somethin’ better to do than bug me?”

“Not until about five when dinner starts cooking. I’ve got plenty of time.” She grinned and Daryl just gave up and handed the flask over. Parker greedily took a gulp then spluttered, coughing harder than she anticipated.

“You’re gonna cough a lung up, give that back.” Daryl snatched the drink from her hands and tutted. “S’just whiskey, won’t kill ya.”

“I think it tried its best.” Parker wheezed. “That’s the strongest whiskey I’ve ever had.“

"Nah, you’ve just had crap whiskey.” Daryl said teasingly and sipped again, making her huff.

“I prefer tequila.” Daryl snorted as her.

“Course you do.” 

“What’s wrong with tequila?”

“It’s a college girl’s drink.” He said, leaning back against the bricks. Parker raised her eyebrow at him.

“I used to be in College.” Daryl didn’t respond. “Okay fair enough.” She sighed and he smirked slightly. “You gonna tell me something about yourself then?”

“Nope.” Daryl said, folding his arms defiantly. Parker clicked her tongue.

“Fine. Then, how about we do something fun?”

“Like what?” Daryl asked, trying to sound as bored as possible when in reality he was kind of intrigued.

“Have you played never have I ever?” Parker asked, thinking of the first drinking game that she played in high school. Daryl frowned. “It’s a drinking game.” Parker said but Daryl still didn’t react.

“Never needed a game to get lit before.” He said, making her snort in amusement.

“Basically, I say something I’ve never done, and if you’ve done it then you drink. And you do the same for me. If you haven’t done it, then you don’t drink and we pass it on. Make sense?”

“Do I have to do this?” Daryl asked.

“No, but what else do you have to do today?” 

“Sleep?”

“Come on, have fun for once. All you do is mope around up here and you don’t talk to anybody.” Parker said, leaning forward slightly. “Just for a bit, okay? Then I promise I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the day.” Daryl thought it over before letting out a long sigh.

“Fine.” He gave in. “You first..” Parker grinned at him wickedly.

“Okay. Never have I ever...stolen something.” Daryl sneered at her before taking a sip and she gasped at him. 

“And you said you weren’t a thief.” She teased.

“I ain’t! Just took some cigarettes from some guy once. He wasn’t usin’ ‘em.” She shook her head but nodded his way.

“Okay. Your turn.”

Daryl wracked his brain, all whilst trying to avoid the lingering eye contact Parker was trying to make with him. “Never have I ever been outside of Georgia.”

“Wait, seriously?” She asked and he shook his head casually. “Not even for a vacation?”

“A vacation was goin' camping in the woods.” He said. “Did that every other day.” She gestured for him to hand her the hip flask and he did, watching her take a sip. This time she tried to keep the coughing to a minimum. 

“Okay, my turn.” This carried on for another hour, Daryl asking simple questions whilst Parker was trying to draw more and more interesting ones out of him. Yet, he had barely drank from the flask, apparently not having done many of the things Parker had done. She was feeling tipsy already and she swayed slightly in her seat, giggling at the look Daryl was giving her.

“You have really nice eyes, you know that?”

“Jesus.” Daryl grunted. “You really are a college girl. Can’t handle your liquor.”

“It’s been a while, okay, let me live a little.” She groaned, sitting against the log and letting her legs sprawl out in front of her. Daryl was still in the same position, hardly moving at all. But then again, she had nearly finished the flask off by herself. She started to get bored of being the only one drinking, and decided to venture in deeper questions. Questions that she only dared to ask in her idiotic state.

“Never have I ever hooked up with someone that I regret right after.” Daryl didn’t move and Parker threw her hands up. “Seriously?!”

“Now what?” He asked.

“There’s gotta be something you’ve done before. You can’t be that boring.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, your highness.” He said. “But I don’t hook up with people when I’m railed.”

“You’re missing out.”

“Am I?” He raised an eyebrow. Parker swallowed.

“Guess not. Fine. Never have I ever hooked up with somebody that I regretted when I was sober.”

“Now you’re cheatin’.” He said bluntly, heat rising to his cheeks.

“Just give me an answer. I’ll let you ask two questions in a row if you want.” Daryl looked at the flask in his hand and paused. Did he want to lie? He looked at Parker and then handed her the flask. She stared at him, mouth falling open. “You’re kidding? So everyone you’ve ever hooked up with wasn’t a mistake? You have no regrets whatsoever?”

“It’s my turn.” Daryl said quietly.

“But I have another question!” Parker whined.

“You said I could ask two in a row. So I’m gonna ask two.” Daryl pointed out and she pouted at him. 

“Thought you weren’t enjoying this game.” 

He ignored her. “Never have I ever lied to my brother.” Parker rolled her eyes and took a huge gulp from the flask and Daryl snorted. “Bet that’s a story or two.”

“Or seven.” Parker muttered. 

“What you lied about?”

“Too much, next question.” She said with a wave of her hand. Daryl bit the inside of his cheek whilst thinking. 

“Never have I ever...snored so much it woke everyone up in camp.” Parker blushed a deep shade of red and glared at him as Daryl held back a laugh. 

“You asshole! I do not snore!”

“Lie.” 

“I don’t! Don’t bully me!”

“S’not bullyin’ if it’s the truth.” Daryl said whilst covering his mouth was his hand, suppressing a smile. Parker stuck her tongue at him, like the mature adult she was, before sipping and then putting the flask at her feet. Then she realised something and looked at Daryl through narrowed eyes. The way he had been answering these questions seemed strange to her, and a thought popped into her head. Something that only drunk Parker would be stupid enough to say.

“Never have I ever had sex.” She said bluntly, making Daryl choke on air. She stared him down as he went pink. She had him now.

“Thought we were saying things we haven’t done.” He said slowly. She shrugged.

“Sometimes you can break that rule, if you’re curious enough.” She replied. Daryl looked away.

“I ain’t drinkin’, if that’s what you were lookin’ for.” He said after a moment’s pause. Parker sat back against the log, not being able to believe he was actually being honest with her. “I ain’t ashamed. There’s more important thing to be worryin’ about out here. Especially now. So go ahead, think whatever you want.” Daryl brought his leg up and rested his elbow against it, leaning back against his own log, as Parker stared into his eyes. 

She didn’t say anything for a long time and Daryl started to get uncomfortable, or at least more uncomfortable than he already was. He wasn’t entirely sure why he admitted something like that to her, but there wasn’t anything he could do about that now. It was out in the open and floating around them in this small space. And Daryl really, really wanted to go and shoot something.

“Daryl?” Her soft voice asked, calling him back to reality. She had leaned forward, kneeling in front of him so she could see into his eyes better; something he wasn’t enjoying. “Have you even kissed someone before?” Daryl scoffed at her, fiddling with his jacket.

“I don’t wanna play this stupid game anymore. It’s for kids.”

“It’s a drinking game, it’s not for kids at all.”

“Well it’s just stupid then.”

“Daryl.” Parker repeated, leaning forward even further so she was resting on her palms that had been placed in front of his boots.. “Just stop.”

“Stop what?” He asked, frowning.

“Talking.” She whispered and moved her body forward. Daryl didn’t have enough time to register what was happening before he felt something soft press against his mouth. Seconds ticked by before he opened his eyes, not even realising he had shut them in the first place, and was met with Parker’s closed ones. He felt her sigh against his mouth and everything came crashing down on him like a ton of bricks; which if he pushed the stack behind him hard enough might actually come true. She was kissing him. He felt his stomach knot up and the air caught in his lungs as he tried to breath, but nothing happened. So he lifted his hands, planted them on her shoulders, and shoved her away with all his strength, sending her flying backwards into the dirt. Daryl jumped up and stumbled, the liquor finally reaching his head and making things go fuzzy. 

“The hell was that?” He shouted, glaring at her. Parker blinked up at him and touched her lips before blushing.

“I-I-”

“Go!” Daryl snarled, turning his back on her. “This stupid game’s over. I don’t want you here!” 

“Daryl, I’m s-sorry!” She tried to say, crawling onto her knees and pushing her body upright, swaying slightly as the alcohol was still fresh in her system. Daryl shook his head and tried not to let anger get the better of him. He didn’t want to scare her like he did Carol the other night. But he was so mad. How could she just do that? He didn’t give her permission, he didn’t want that from her. The hell was she even thinking?

“I don’t care just...just go.” He said finally before storming off into his tent and zipping up the door. He collapsed onto his cot and covered his face with his hands, feeling how warm it was and how drenched it now was with sweat. He listened for Parker’s footsteps and after a minute or so he heard her run off, seemingly in the direction of the main camp, and sighed in relief. Daryl laid there for a while, thinking over that entire situation, and closed his eyes. He had to stop this, whatever feeling he had for her. He didn’t like it, he didn’t want it. It was all too much for him to handle, and Parker’s action just confirmed it. He was better off alone, he repeated that in his head all day until he went to sleep that night. 

“Ain’t nobody ever gonna love you except me, little brother.” 

Merle was right, Daryl thought before drifting off to sleep. He was much better off alone.


	11. Public Execution

Randall knew Maggie. That was the news Rick and Shane had returned with three days ago, and now everyone was on edge. They had put him back into the shed beside the barn, not really knowing what else to do with him, before Rick decided they needed to know more about Randall’s people. So he sent Daryl to ‘talk’ to him. At first, Parker wanted to speak up about this. She didn’t care that Randall was getting beaten up, the little shit had shot at them for god sake, he was obviously on the opposite side. But sending Daryl to beat the kid up to get information out of him? That wasn’t him, so she had no idea why Rick hadn’t asked Shane instead. Sure, Daryl was hot headed and temperamental when it came to his anger, but Shane was scary when he was angry. Daryl? He just looked normal. “I’ve made up my mind, Parker.” Rick had said as she walked with him across the perimeter of the farm, checking the wire fences and seeing if they were stable. Parker looked at her feet.

“But wouldn’t Shane want to beat the crap out of him?” She asked. “They aren’t exactly the best of friends, him and Randall.”

“No one’s best friends with Randall.” Rick said. “But Daryl he-” He cut himself off and Parker looked up at him in confusion.

“He what?”

Risk hesitated but glanced down at her before pulling on the fences again. “He volunteered.” Parker frowned. “He seemed pretty angry and I mentioned Randall probably had information we needed, and he told me he’d do it and marched off. I didn’t really get to agree with him myself.”

“But...why would Daryl do that?” She asked. “He’s not exactly the ‘talking’ type.” Rick grimaced.

“Trust me, not much talking is gonna happen in there.”

When Daryl made his way over to Randall’s shed, Parker followed him from a few feet away. Neither had spoken to the other since she kissed him; something she very much regretted now she thought about it. It was stupid to just throw herself on him, he didn’t want that. He showed no real signs of feelings for her, she just assumed he’d be cool with it. Kiss her back at least. But Daryl had frozen then shoved her off, and she knew where they stood now. Awkward acquaintances. But she still wanted to keep an eye on him; she felt like she had too. Daryl was more on edge than ever, someone had to make sure he wasn’t doing anything stupid.

So Parker sat outside the shed by herself, listening to Daryl beat the absolute shit out of Randall for nearly twenty minutes, before finally something happened.

She kept hearing the sound of a fist hitting a nose and she winced when it suddenly cracked, making Randall splutter and cry out. That didn’t make Daryl stop, however, if anything it spurred him on and he struck the kid again, and Parker heard him collapse to the floor.

“I-I told you!” Randall whimpered from his awkward position on the floor, curling up as best he could to shield his body whilst his hands were still cuffed behind his back. Daryl scoffed.

“You ain’t told me shit!” He spat and grabbed Randall by the collar, yanking him up. Randall yelped as the cuffs pulled on his wrists and struggled against Daryl’s grip. Daryl threw him against the wall and outside Parker jumped, not expecting the heavy blow.

“I barely knew those guys!” Randall’s voice cracked and he spat out some blood. “I met ‘em on the road!”

“How many in your group?” Daryl asked, standing over him menacingly. Randall didn’t say anything, just let out big spurts of air as his lungs ached in his chest. Daryl just slowly pulled out his hunting knife and let it rest in his hand against his thigh, and the second Randall saw it he started to panic.

“N-no! Come on, man!” He yelled as Daryl then rushed forward and stabbed the knife the floor in between Randall’s open legs, his life flashing before his eyes.

“How many?!” Daryl bellowed, staring right into the kid’s eyes.

“Uh, uh...uh thirty! Thirty guys!”

“Where?”

“Uhh…” Daryl ripped Randall’s bandage off, revealing the ugly scabbed up scar left behind from Hershel’s surgery. Randall cried out as the bandage ripped at his skin, taking some hairs with it, and stared at Daryl pleadingly. “I don’t know, I swear!” He hissed through gritted teeth. “We were never in any place for more than a night!” Daryl slowly pushed the knife into the scab, hearing it squelch and tear under the blade. Randall started to cry.

“Scoutin’?” Daryl asked, then looked directly into his eyes. “Plan on stayin’ local?” He kept his hand firmly on Randall’s injured leg as the younger boy wriggled around and tried to escape Daryl’s grasp, and the blade of his knife.

“I don’t know! They left me behind!”

“You ever pick off a scab?” Daryl asked threateningly and pressed the blade harder into the wound.

“C-c-come on, man! I’m tryin’ to cooperate!”

“Ya start real slow at first, but sooner or later you just gotta rip it off!” Daryl pressed down and Randall shouted at him.

“Okay!” He calmed his breathing, looking at Daryl through his one good eye, the other slightly puffed up and bloody. “Okay. T-t-they have weapons. Heavy stuff; automatics.” Daryl kept on moving his blade around, making Randall squirm. “B-but I didn’t do anything!”

“You shot at my boys.” Daryl said. “And one of our women. You try to take this farm? You just went along for the ride? You’re tryin’ to tell me you’re innocent?!” He shouted.

“YES!” Randall cried. “These people took me in, not just guys a whole group of ‘em!” Daryl took his blade away, becoming intrigued, but kept the knife out and against his knee so Randall could still see it. “Men and women, uh, kids too just like you people! Thought I’d have a better chance with them, you know? But...we go out, scavenge, just the men.” Randall looked at the floor suddenly, his face dropping, and Daryl scowled at him. “One night we...we found this little campsite. A man and his two daughters. Teenagers, you know? Real young.” Randall then slowly looked up at Daryl with a look in his eye that made the older man’s stomach turn. “Real cute.” The realisation of what was about to be said washed over Daryl like a tidal wave. “The guy had to watch while these guys they...and they didn’t even kill him afterwards! They just...they just made him watch. His daughters, they just...just left ‘em there.” Randall looked up, realising that Daryl was staring at him, and suddenly went back to his whiny old self. “But-but I-I didn’t touch those girls! Nah, I swear.”

Daryl didn’t even think, he just kicked him straight in the gut. Randall begged him to stop, but Daryl just snarled and kicked him again.

“You gotta believe me, man!” Randall cried, tears falling from his one good eye. “I’m not like that! I ain’t like that.” He sobbed, but Daryl just threw another punch to his nose, making him scream.

From outside, Parker was holding herself and staring at the shed door in horror, refusing to let herself cry again. She had heard everything, and shuddered at the thought of Randall spending one more night on the farm with them. Near Beth, near Carl, near any of them. If his men found their farm...she nearly gagged at the thought of what could happen to them all. The women especially. Suddenly, the shed door slammed open and she jumped back as Daryl stormed out, kicking it shut behind him and locking it. He then yelled and kicked the door with his foot in pure rage before resting his head against it and breathing deeply. Parker awkwardly stood behind him, not yet being seen, before she cleared her throat.

“You okay?” Daryl froze then turned to face her. His face was angry but he didn’t yell at her. He just shook his head.

“What are you doin’ out here?” He grunted. Parker shrugged.

“Well, I didn’t come for the view.” She retorted and Daryl just scoffed. She then noticed his bloody knuckles. ”Socked him pretty good. At least we know now what his story is.”

“Lil asshole deserved it.” He said, pushing away from the door and standing next to her.

“He did.” Daryl glanced at her, surprised to hear her say that. “I want him gone. Off the farm. It’s not safe with him being here, whether his buddies abandoned him or not. They still could have followed us or at least find out we exist and try something.” Daryl nodded.

“Didn’t know you thought that way.” He said.

“His people raped two girls and made their father watch. I’ll kill the prick myself.” Parker snapped and started walking ahead of him towards the camp, spotting her brother stood to one side near Lori and Carol. Daryl sighed and shook his head before following her, grabbing his crossbow from a nearby tree where he left it and swinging it over his shoulder. Everyone turned to stare at his bloody and bruised knuckles when he was close enough but he just ignored them. It wasn’t exactly rocket science, figuring out what had happened, so Daryl let them stare. None of them had the balls to do what he did anyway; the dirty work.

“Boy there’s got a gang.” He said once everyone’s eyes were on him. “Thirty men. Got heavy artillery and they ain’t lookin’ to make friends. They roll through here, our boys are dead. And our women are gonna wish they were.” Parker shuffled next to Glenn and he patted her arm.

“That’s not gonna happen.” He whispered and she just nodded without looking at him.

“What did you do?” Carol asked, nodding at his knuckles. Daryl just glanced at them and shrugged.

“Had a little chat.” His eyes glossed over to Parker and she stared right back. Rick then walked to the front of the group and addressed them all.

“No one goes near this guy.” He ordered.

“Rick.” Lori said quietly, standing at his side. “What are you going to do?”

“We have no choice, he’s a threat. We have to eliminate the threat.” Everyone in the camp went silent. Then Dale shook his head.

“You’re just gonna kill him?” He asked and Parker glared at him.

“You’re not seriously thinking we keep him here, are you?” She snapped and Glenn jumped, not expecting her to be so aggressive.

“Parker, he’s just a kid.” Dale said. Parker scoffed at him.

“I heard what he told Daryl. The things his people did are sick, I’m not having some rapist stay in our camp.”

“Rapist?” Carol gasped and stared at the shed in shock. Dale shook his head at Parker and stepped towards her.

“Killing isn’t-”

“I’m not listening to this.” She interrupted him and walked over to Rick and Shane. “Get it done. I don’t care how just...get it done.” Rick looked into her eyes, seeing the seriousness behind her words, and nodded.

“It’s settled. We do it today.” He walked off, not allowing anyone a word in edge ways, and Parker had never felt such appreciation for a man before. He understood, he knew the risk they were taking by keeping him here. And he had listened to her without a moment’s hesitation. Parker ignored the other’s looking at her and made her way into her tent, zipping it shut and falling down onto the cot, bringing the covers up over her body and turning to curl up on her side. She closed her eyes just as thunder cracked overhead, signalling the start of a long night ahead of them.

***  
Daryl was sorting through his arrows when Dale approached him. He took one look at the old man before sighing, placing two makeshift arrows to one side. They could still do with some cutting down.

“The whole point of me comin’ up here was to get away from you people.” He said.

“It’s gonna take more than that.” Dale said and Daryl rolled his eyes before standing up straight.

“Carol send you?” Daryl asked, still annoyed that she had bothered him twice in one night.

Dale shook his head. “Carol’s not the only one who’s concerned about you.” Daryl scoffed and grabbed some more arrows, making sure they were all the same length.

“What, Parker worried too?” Dale smiled slightly.

“I never said anything about Parker.” Daryl paused and looked at him over his shoulder.

“What do you want?” He grunted. Dale turned serious again.

“Your new role in the group.”

“I don’t need my head shrunk. This group’s broken. I’m better off fendin’ for myself.” Dale watched patiently as he stepped over some of the bricks and grabbed his blue shirt with the winged leather jacket over it.

“You act like you don’t care.” He said. Daryl nodded.

“S’beacuse I don’t.” He swung the jacket around and shoved his arm through the holes as Dale shook his head.

“So live or die, you don’t care what happens to Randall?”

“Nope.”

“Then why not stand with me? Why not try and save the kid’s life? If it really doesn’t matter one way or the other-”

“I didn’t peg you for a desperate sum-bitch.” Daryl said, adjusting the collar on his jacket.

“Your opinion makes a difference.” Dale said.

“Man, ain’t nobody lookin’ at me for nothin’.” Daryl grabbed his crossbow and arrows and began walking away when Dale stopped him.

“Parker is. And, and I am. Right now.” Daryl reluctantly turned around faced Dale. “And obviously you have Rick’s ear.”

“Rick just looks to Shane. Parker has Glenn, the hell does she need to talk to me for?” Daryl said bitterly.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Dale asked and that hit Daryl like a slap in the face.

“The hell you talkin’ ‘bout?”

“It’s not rocket science, son.” Dale said, stepping towards him. Daryl blinked and clutched his crossbow tighter in his hand. “I’ve seen how she looks at you, how she listens to you like some of the others might not. She’s always tried with you, ever since Atlanta. But you just throw it away, you don’t care.”

“You don’t know what you’re sayin’, old man.” Daryl hissed, getting in Dale’s face.

“Oh, I do.” He said, standing his ground. That just made Daryl both respect him and detest him even more. “And you do too. So just give her a chance. She’s a nice girl, and if she’s willing to make an effort I see no reason as to why you shouldn’t too.”

“You ain’t no damn match maker!” Daryl snapped, his anger getting the better of him. “So just leave it, alright?”

Dale watched him walk away and he tried one last time to make him see sense. “You know I’m right. You know she cares! Just don’t leave it before it’s too late!” Daryl disappeared into the woods and shook his head.

“Crazy asshole.” He muttered before finding some deer tracks and setting off after them, trying really hard not to think about anything Dale said.

“Just don’t leave it before it’s too late!”

It’s already too late, Daryl thought, and allowed his hunting senses to take over.

***  
“You really want him dead, don’t you.” Glenn said, sitting beside his sister on the Greene’s sofa. Parker rested her forearms on her knees and ran a hand through her short hair.

“I just don’t want him near us, Glenn.” She sighed. “Maybe I was being hot headed when I told Rick that but...he’s dangerous. We don’t know him, what if he does something?”

“Hey, I agree with you. It’s not safe to keep him here.” Glenn said, raising his hands in mock surrender. “I’m just surprised you’re okay with execution.” Parker stared at him wide eyed.

“Is that what you’d call it?”

“It’s what Dale calls it.” He said sadly. Dale had visited pretty much everybody in the camp now, Hershel included, to try and convince them that keeping Randall alive was not only the right thing to do, but something that may benefit them all in the end. He believed they could put him to work, or he could be a valuable asset. But Parker still didn’t like the way he had spoken to Daryl. That tone of voice creeped her out, and she refused to allow that boy to run off the moment their backs were turned. He could bring his men back and if they wanted, they could take over the farm. She couldn’t let that happen to Hershel and his family, she felt obligated to keep the farm safe now. It had been her home for nearly two months at this point, she didn’t want that to be taken away from her.

“I just hope he knows we still support him, just not on this.” Parker said., leaning back into the sofa. “Dale’s a great guy and he’s right about pretty much everything but…I can’t budge on this. I won’t.” Glenn nodded. Parker then saw him shift uncomfortably in his seat. He wanted to say something. “What is it?”

“We never talked about it. The fight we had. About Maggie and me?” Glenn said and Parker looked away, shame instantly filling her body. She had wanted to bring this up too, still feeling guilty now that she knew Maggie a little better.

“Look, Glenn-”

“Thank you.” Parker frowned and cocked her head to the side.

“Um...for what?”

“For being there for me.” He said, smiling. “I know that you meant well, you were trying to protect me and I was just thinking about myself. I didn’t even take Hershel’s opinion into account but now...just, thank you, Parker.” He reached over and pulled her into a hug. At first she didn’t respond, but after a few seconds she wrapped her arms around her little brother and smiled into his shoulder. “Thank you for everything.”

“Don’t get all sappy on me.” She joked, pulling away and grinning at him. “But what I said was wrong. You aren’t risking anything being with her, in fact, I fully encourage it.”

“You do?” He asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah. You’re happy with her, right?” Judging by the dopey smile on his face, that was a yes. “Well then, that’s all I needed to know. Just don’t upset her, okay? She’s tough and I’m pretty sure she could kick your ass whenever she felt like it.” Glenn snorted.

“Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“I’m always right.” She teased, and reached up to ruffle his hair. Glenn was slapping her hand away when Hershel walked out of Beth’s room, a small smile on his face. The twins stood up politely and he nodded at them.

“How’s she doing?” Parker asked, glancing into the small bedroom to see Beth rolling over to take a nap, a tiny smile on her face.

“She seems to be in good spirits today.” Hershel said before closing the door slightly.

“Well, let us know if we can do anything to help.” Glenn said and his sister turned to sit down on the couch, leaving her brother to stand beside her, his hands stuffed into his pockets. Hershel then tilted his head and looked between the two of them, studying them both intently.

“Where’s your family from?” The twins glanced at each other before Glenn cleared his throat.

“Um, Michigan.” He said. “But before that, Korea.” Hershel nodded, as if satisfied with that answer.

“Immigrants built this country. Never forget that.” The twins both smiled. “My family came from Ireland.” Hershel said after a pause, walking over to them.

“Maggie Greene, I kind of figured.” Glenn chuckled.

Hershel then reached into his pocket and pulled out a large, silver pocket watch. Parker had never seen something so beautiful before; the silver shone in the light and illuminated the small detailing, and the second she heard the small, rhythmic ticking, she realised how valuable it was. Time was something they hadn’t had much of nowadays, never knowing what day of the week it was, what month. But Hershel had all the answers in that tiny watch. It was incredible.

“My grandfather brought this over from the old country.” He said, turning the watch over in his hands. “He passed it onto my father, who passed it on to me. I pawned it to pay for a night of drinking that I do not remember.” He chuckled to himself and the twins smiled.

“But you bought it back.” Parker said, standing from the couch. Hershel smiled down at her.

“My late wife did. Josephine, Maggie’s mother. She gave it back years later when I’d sobered up. She was a good woman, my Jo.” Parker stepped closer to her brother and he in return bumped his arm with hers. It was a little thing they did to let the other know they were still there, right by their side. And they both knew that that was what Hershel was thinking about Josephine. She was still with him, she’d never left. Parker just hoped Maggie thought that too. “Maggie’s a lot like her.” He said after a while of staring at the face of the watch. “When we were in that bar, afterwards, I thought a lot about a lot of things.” He turned directly to Glenn. “If you become a father someday, you’ll understand. No man is good enough for your little girl, until one is.” Parker smiled and glanced at her brother, who was staring at Hershel with wide eyes. He was giving Glenn his blessing. Hershel then gently let the watch dangle from his fingers before lifting it up to Glenn. “Go on now,” He said, “before I change my mind about you.” Glenn didn’t react for a second, before slowly lifting his hand and taking the watch, looking at it and letting his thumb run over the face.

“Thanks.” He whispered. Hershel nodded once more, before turning back to Beth’s room and disappearing inside. Neither of the twins said anything for a while, they just stared at the empty space where their host had been stood, before Glenn slowly sat on the couch again, staring at his new watch. Parker sat beside him and nudged him gently.

“He’s right you know.” She whispered. Glenn turned to her. “You are good for her.”

“I got what he meant already.” Glenn said suddenly, making Parker frown.

“But you’re not even a Dad.”

“I don’t have to be. I have you.” Parker rolled her eyes but Glenn took her hand in his. “I’m serious. No guy is ever gonna be good enough for you in my eyes, they just won’t. Because you’re my sister, you’re everything.”

“I’m still older than you.” Parker joked with a sniff. “You can’t tell me who I can and can’t date.” Glenn chuckled and flicked her shoulder playfully.

“Only by three minutes.” He said softly. Parker then leaned her head against his shoulder and stared at the watch with him, both of them revelling in the meaning behind it. And Parker realised something; Hershel Greene was too good for this world.

***  
Everyone had gathered in the living room at sunset, just like Rick had told Dale, and they were all desperate for a fight not to break out. Parker stood behind Glenn who was on the piano stool next to Dale, and she bit her thumb nail nervously. Daryl wasn’t too far behind her, leaning against some drawers, with Rick in front of him. Everyone else was either stood or sat in a semi circle, no one being able to make eye contact with anyone else in the room. The tension could cut like a knife, they all knew it.

“So, how do we do this?” Glenn asked after a while of very uncomfortable silence. “Take a vote?”

“Does it have to be unanimous?” Andrea asked. But Lori shook her head.

“No, majority rules.”

“Let’s just see where everybody stands. Then we can talk through the options.” Rick spoke up. He was clearly tired, emotionally and physically, but he couldn’t do much about it. They had to make a decision, tonight.

“Hell, the way I see it, there’s only one way to move forward.” Shane said in a bored tone, as if he didn’t even care. Parker scowled at him and it didn’t go unnoticed by him. “There a problem?”

“No.” She bit back. “Just wish you could take this more seriously.”

“Ain’t I? I’m saying we do the only thing we should do.”

“Killing him, right?” Dale asked with a shake of his head. “I mean, why even bother taking a vote it’s clear which way the winds blowing.”

“Well if people believe we should spare him, I wanna know.” Rick said, leaning against a chair.

“Well, I can tell you it’s a small group.” Dale said bitterly, looking at everyone in turn. “Maybe just me and Glenn.” Parker looked down at her brother who looked rather sheepish, and Dale turned to him when he didn’t say anything to back him up.

“Look I-I think you’re pretty much right about everything all the time, but-”

“They’ve got you scared!” Dale exclaimed, raising his hands to sweep over everyone in the room.

“He can speak for himself.” Parker said gently. “He’s allowed to disagree with you sometimes.”

“But this is a young adult’s life!” Dale hissed. “Surely that’s something you can relate to, you’re both practically the same age as Randall!”

“He’s not one of us!” Glenn said. “And we’ve...we’ve lost too many people already.” Glenn looked down and Parker brought her hands up to rest them on his shoulders, giving them a reassuring squeeze. Dale didn’t know what to say, but then he turned to Maggie.

“What about you? Do you agree with this?” She looked startled but turned to Rick with a big sigh.

“Couldn’t we continue keepin’ him prisoner?”

“S’just another mouth to feed.” Daryl chimed in.

“It may be a lean winter.” Hershel pointed out.

“We could ration better.” Lori said softly, folding her arms over her chest.

“Or he could be an asset!” Dale argued, gaining everyone’s attention once again. “Give him a chance to prove himself!”

“Dale, his people are dangerous. God knows what they’re capable of doing if they find us here." Parker said. “At the bar, when those two men came in, they were from Randall’s group. They drew on Rick not long after he refused to take them to where we were staying. They chose to be violent and they will again.” Everyone went quiet again.

“We could put him to work?” Glenn suggested.

“We’re not letting him walk around.” Rick said firmly.

“Put an escort on him.” Maggie said and Shane scoffed.

“Who wants to volunteer for that duty?” He asked.

“I will.” Dale snapped.

“I don’t think any of us should be walking around with this guy.” Rick said with a raise of his hand. Behind him, Lori nodded.

“He’s right, I wouldn’t feel safe unless he was tied up.”

“We can’t exactly put chains around his ankles and sentence him to hard labour.” Andrea pointed out.

“Look.” Shane said, standing up a little straighter than before. “Say we let him join us, alright, maybe he’s helpful. Maybe he’s nice. We let our guard down, maybe he runs off and brings back his thirty men.” Daryl couldn’t help but glance over at Parker. If those men came to the farm...the things they might do to her.

“So the answer is to kill him? To prevent a crime he may never even attempt!” Dale spluttered. He desperately looked at Rick, his eyes wide and wild. “If we do this, we’re saying there’s no hope. Rule of law is dead, there is no civilisation!” Another pause, then Shane looked away.

“Oh my god.” He muttered, not wanting to hear anything else come out of Dale’s mouth.

“Could you drive him further out, leave him like you planned?” Hershel asked.

“They barely came back last time. It’s not worth the risk.” Parker said with a shrug.

“She’s right. There are walkers, you could break down, you could get lost.” Lori nodded, looking at her husband with a worried expression.

“Get ambushed.” Daryl muttered.

“They’re all right, we should not put our own people at risk,” Glenn said.

“We’re already doing that by keeping him here. Either way we’re kind of screwed.” Parker said and looked at her feet.

“If you go through with it, how would you do it? Would he suffer?” Patricia suddenly asked and Parker almost forgot she was there. She was always so quiet, so observant. Just listened and never really spoke up.

“Could hang him.” Shane suggested. “Snap his neck.”

“Yeah, I thought about that.” Rick grunted.

“That just seems like we’re back in the dark ages.” Parker shuddered.

“Maybe shooting is more humane.” Rick offered, looking her way. She just shrugged.

“Whatever you think is best.” She said quietly.

“What about the body? I mean do we-” T-Dog started to say, but Dale abruptly cut him off.

“Woah hold on! Hold on! You’re talking about this like it’s already decided!” He exclaimed.

“Been talkin’ all day. Goin’ around in circles, do you just wanna go around in circles again?” Daryl snapped, getting fed up of all the chatter. Just do what had to be done, he thought to himself, get it over with so they could move on. Stop this pointless arguing.

“This is a young man’s life!” Dale cried. “And it is worth more than a five minute conversation! Is this what it’s come too? We kill someone because we can’t decide what else to do with him? You saved him! And now look at us, he’s been tortured, he’s going to be executed! How are we any better than those people we’re so afraid of?”

“Dale, it’s not like that.” Parker said whilst pinching the bridge of her nose.

“No it’s exactly like that!” Dale said harshly, glaring at her. “None of you care, do you? What if it was one of ours?”

“What are you talking about?” Shane asked with a groan. Andrea shushed him.

“If one of us was taken by another group, like Randall, and they tortured them. Beat them. Messed with their head the way we have and then decided to execute him after not much thought? How would you all feel, huh?” He was shouting now and Parker felt her hands shake on Glenn’s shoulders. He reached a hand up to steady them but she pulled away, the contact making her uneasy. Dale turned to her, a dark look in his eye. “If it was Glenn, you’d be devastated that they didn’t even consider keeping him alive. They just killed him, right off the bat!”

“Stop it, that’s never going to happen.” Parker hissed.

“You don’t know that! This world is dangerous, but if we carry out with this then we’re dangerous too!” Dale threw his hands up in the air and then looked around at everyone. He needed them to just understand, but none of them were listening. Not really. “Daryl.” The younger man looked up, not expecting to be called out. “Parker means something to you-”

“Don’t.” Daryl growled. Parker stared at him, her mouth slightly agape.

“Her life is worth more than a conversation, not just to you, but to everyone. All of our lies are more than that. And so is Randall’s.” Dale was seething with rage, his hands shaking and his lip trembling. Eventually, Rick looked around the group, dumb struck. But Shane was the first to speak up.

“We all know what needs to be done.” He said, his voice softer than before.

“No, Dale is right.” Rick said, making everyone stop and stare at him. “We can’t leave any stone unturned here-”

“So what’s the solution?” Andrea interrupted.

“Let Rick finish.” Lori said rudely and Andrea raised an eyebrow at her. Rick hesitantly nodded her way, giving her the floor.

“We haven’t come up with a single viable option yet.” Andrea pointed out. “I wish we could but-”

“So let’s work on it!” Dale shouted.

“Stop it!” Carol called out, making everyone go quiet. “Just stop it. I’m sick of everybody arguing and fighting! I didn’t ask for this, you can’t ask us to decide something like this.” Carol said, directing her last comment at Rick. “Please decide, either of you, both of you. But leave me out.” She pressed herself against the door and sighed, feeling better after her outburst.

“Not speaking out, or killing him yourself. There’s no difference!” Dale said angrily.

“Alright, that’s enough.” Rick said loudly. “Anybody wants the floor, before we make a final decision, has the chance.” Nobody moved for a long time. Maggie and Patricia both sat down, not wanting to draw attention to themselves, whilst everyone else refused to look one another in the eye. Parker looked around and sighed before stepping forward. Daryl watched from behind her, taking in her every movement, before she spoke.

“I heard everything that Randall said to Daryl in the shed.” She said slowly. “I heard him beg for Daryl to stop hitting him, I heard him cry, and I heard him plead for his life. But the only thing I took in was that his men raped two girls.” Everyone stiffened. She had to be blunt, she had to try and make Dale change his mind. The severity of the situation was too high, they were too vulnerable to take any chances. Even if that meant the death of someone who could be innocent...Parker realised they really didn’t have much of a choice, not anymore. “They made their Father watch, and then they left them there. We haven’t been here long, we haven’t known each other for that long. But you guys are important to me, you’re family now. You’ve been good to Glenn and I, and I am forever in your debts for keeping us alive so far.”

“Parker-” Glenn said but she hushed him.

“I need to be honest.” She said gently. “I’ve come to make friends with all of you, and the thought of that being taken away is…” She paused and her eyes drifted over her shoulder at Daryl. He didn’t look away, he didn’t even flinch, he just looked right back at her. Right into her eyes. And something passed through the two of them, something neither had ever felt so strongly before. Protection. “Dale, I know this is hard to hear.” She said, looking at the old man who she had come to know as a good friend. A voice of reason. He blinked at her. “But if Randall was telling the truth about his group then I refuse to let anything happen to anyone in this room. I won’t let anything happen to Carl either, or Beth, or Glenn. Nothing is gonna stop me from protecting them, from protecting everybody. And if that means he has to die, then I don’t see why we’re wasting our time arguing anymore.” She hastily wiped at her eyes when she was finished and stared at the wooden floorboards at her feet. She hadn’t meant to open up like that to them all, but it was out there now. There was no going back. But she meant it, every word. From then on, she’d do everything she could to protect them all, no matter the cost. She had to be brave and strong now, not afraid or worried or cautious. She just had to fight, she had to.

“Isn’t there anybody else who’s gonna stand with me?” Parker snapped her head round to look at Dale and she pleaded with him through her eyes to just stop.

“He’s right.” Andrea said and Parker shook her head, running a hand through her hair. “We should try to find another way.”

“Anybody else?” Rick asked. Silence. Dale scoffed, tears welling up in his eyes.

“You all gonna watch, too?” He asked sarcastically. “No. You’ll go hide your heads in your tents and try to forget that we’re slaughtering a human being. I won’t be a party too it.” He said and stepped past Glenn and Parker before stopping in front of Daryl, resting his hand on his shoulder. “This group is broken.” He said and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

***  
It was one of the darkest nights Georgia had had in weeks, and it seemed rather fitting as Daryl dragged Randall towards the barn, towards his death, Rick and Shane just ahead of him, with Parker trailing behind. She had tugged on one of Glenn’s baseball caps and threw a hoodie of his over her shoulders to keep the cold away from her skin the best she could, but she was still shivering. Dale hadn’t been seen for hours, too distraught with the group’s choices to stick around them for much longer. She didn’t blame him, he was upset, he needed time.

She stared at Daryl’s back as he dragged a whining and struggling Randall by the scruff of the neck towards the barn, the only light source being the moon and the lanterns Rick and Shane were carrying. She had one herself, but kept it low to her side, her muscles being too exhausted to hoist the metal lantern high enough. She was too tired to be doing this, her head was still throbbing every so often, but she needed to see this. She needed to get over her fear of death. It was inevitable, now more than ever, and if she wanted to protect the group like she said she had to be stronger than she had ever been before. So that meant she had to see Randall die first hand. Parker wasn’t going to hang her head like Dale said, like the others were doing, she was going to face up to her decision and see it through. That was the price she was willing to pay.

Rick yanked the barn door open and stepped inside, feeling the cold chill of the air rush through him. Shane followed close behind him and Daryl shoved Randall through the entrance, watching as he nearly stumbled to the floor. Parker was the last through and hesitantly stepped inside, pulling her brother’s hoodie tighter around her body.

“Put him there.” Rick instructed whilst placing the lantern to the side, pointing to the centre of the barn. Daryl did as he was told and pushed Randall into the middle of the room, leaving him exposed to all four pairs of eyes. Parker watched from the sidelines as Shane grabbed Randall’s arm and pulled him backwards so he could tie a bandage over his eyes to stop him from seeing. That only made the boy panic more.

“This’ll all be over soon.” Shane said and Randall’s eyes widened.

“W-wait, what’s gonna be over soon?” His vision was lost once the bandage was wrapped around his head and he started to whimper and wriggle about. “Hey, hey! No, no, no, no!”  
Shane stepped back, Daryl doing the same, as Rick checked his gun for bullets. When he was satisfied with a full house, he clicked it shut and looked at Randall.

“Would you like to stand or kneel?” He asked.

“No, please!” Randall begged, but Daryl had already come up behind him and kicked the back of his knees, making him fall to the hay covered ground. Parker flinched as she heard his knees click under his weight, knowing it must have hurt his injured leg badly. But she shook her head, remembering what Randall had possibly done, and all sympathy went out the window. All of the men nodded at each other, all ready for what was about to happen, before Rick looked at Parker.

“You don’t have to be here for this.” He said quietly as Randall sobbed. Parker met his eyes and held his gaze before straightening out her shoulders and tilting her chin upwards, feeling slightly more powerful.

“No. I do.” She said. Randall turned his head at the familiar voice and blindly looked around. Daryl grunted beside him and Randall flinched.

“Is that the Asian girl, the pretty one?” He asked and all the men glanced at one another again. “Please, please you saved me back at the bar, please don’t let me-” Daryl grabbed onto Randall’s hair and yanked his head up, making him yelp in pain.”No, PLEASE!”

“Don’t you talk to her, okay?” He barked, gripping his hair tighter in his fist. “She ain’t gonna save you, so shut up.” He pulled away, stepping back towards Parker on instinct. He then realised what he had just done and he mentally slapped himself. So much for trying to stop acting like he cared about her.

“Do you have any final words?” Rick asked, holding his gun a little higher.

“Please, please don’t kill me.” Randall sobbed. At first, Parker thought Rick was going to pull away, but then he raised his Python up to Randall’s head and slowly clicked the safety off. Randall’s back straightened and he gulped for air, the shock washing over him like a wave. Parker wanted to tear her eyes away but she held her ground and gripped the handle of the barn door to keep herself from running. She thought she saw something move out of the corner of her eye, but refused to let anything distract her, so she kept her eyes pointed forward. She had to see this, it would change her, she knew that better than anyone. It would change her and she’d grow stronger, she’d protect the others better and become more level headed. That had to happen, it had to. She needed to keep Glenn alive, safe. She had to keep Daryl and Carl and Maggie and Beth and everyone else safe.

Rick stared down at Randall with cold eyes and was about to let his finger squeeze the trigger, when something appeared from the shadows of the barn door.

“Do it, Dad.” Carl said from the doorway and Parker jumped, turning to face him. Shane and Daryl did the same, staring at the kid in shock. “Do it.” Carl said again. Rick hesitated and looked to Shane, but all the other man could do was grumble and storm up to Carl, dragging him by the arm and scolding him for coming down here. Parker watched as Rick seemed to debate with himself inside his own head before putting the gun down. Parker’s heart stopped.

“Take him away.” He said, his voice trembling. Everyone, including Randall, stopped what they were doing and stared at Rick in shock.

“Rick-” Parker tried to say but he shook his head at her. His mind was made up. She shut her mouth and looked at Carl, who looked almost ashamed to have wandered in now. Daryl paused but grabbed Randall and pulled him to his feet, ignoring his series of ‘thank you’s’ and dragged him outside and back up to the shed, grumbling the entire way up. Shane stormed out, throwing the barn door open with a bang, and made his way back to camp, leaving Parker, Carl and Rick alone together. Parker shoved her hands into the hoodie’s pockets and sniffed.

“I’ll let the others know your decision.” She said quietly, not knowing what else to say, before turning to leave. Carl then grabbed her arm and stared up at her, tears in his eyes.

“Don’t be mad at me.” He begged, and Rick watched in amazement, not expecting his son to be so upset about Parker's views on him. Parker bit her lip but gently pulled away.

“Not now, bud.” She said and walked away from him, feeling like an asshole the second she did. Carl was sweet to her, he looked up to her completely. And she had shut him down, all because she hadn’t gotten her way. She hadn’t seen someone die. She kicked a stone near her foot and sighed before walking into the camp. Everyone stood up once they saw her and Glenn was the first to go to her.

“Is it-”

“He didn’t do it.”

Glenn blinked and shook his head. “Why wouldn’t he-”

“Ask him yourself.” She said, not meeting his gaze, and sat down in one of the nearest deck chairs near the fire. Glenn looked over at Maggie, who was sadly looking at Parker. She wanted to go up and talk to her, ask her if she was okay, but she already knew the answer. That speech at the house had inspired her, she never knew Glenn’s sister could have that amount of courage to say such powerful words. Words that laid a heavy burden upon her shoulders, but she had. And Maggie knew Parker had meant every word.

“We’re keeping him in custody.” Rick’s voice came through the trees and everyone except Parker turned to see him and Carl walking towards them. “For now.”

“I’m gonna find Dale.” Andrea said with a smile and left the camp. Parker just stared into the fire as everyone else around her spoke or wandered off. She felt herself falling into a hole, she just didn’t know what to do about it. She hated that she felt this weak, this vulnerable. That was why she had wanted to see Randall’s execution, so she could get over this feeling of dread and worry. One day she knew she would be able to sleep at night without worrying something could happen to one of the group members, because she would be able to protect them. She just knew it. The problem was, now she had to wait for that moment to come.

She heard movement beside her and barely glanced over before she realised that it was Glenn. He looked at her with worry in his eyes and leaned against the chair, running his tongue across his bottom lip.

“Park?” He said gently, tapping her forearm. She didn’t respond. “Please don’t beat yourself up over this.” He begged. “We’ll...we’ll find another way to keep the group safe, I promise.”

“How can you be so sure?” She asked, her voice strained. Glenn looked at the fire himself, and sighed.

“You said that there’s always hope, even when it gets really bad. That’s what you said. You can’t stop believing in that now, okay? We’ll find another way, there’s always another way.” He then looked at her with a worried look and cleared his throat. “What did Dale mean earlier?”  
Parker looked at him. “What do you mean?”

“He said you meant something to Daryl, what does that mean?” Parker felt her eyes widen and Glenn clearly noticed as he started to frown. “Parker? What is it?”

“Glenn, I-” She couldn’t finish her sentence as a scream erupted through the trees. Everyone jumped to their feet, scanning the camp and taking note of who was with them. They were missing Dale, Andrea and Daryl. And the scream had been a man’s. Parker hurried to get her gun from her tent whilst Rick ran out from his own tent with Lori and Carl hot on his heels.

“What happened?” Carl asked his mother but she held him back as Rick told them to stay put. He looked over at T-Dog, who was equally as worried as the rest of them and looked at the bag of guns.

“T-Dog! Get a shotgun, now!” T nodded and ran to the guns as Rick took off in the direction of the screaming. Parker and Glenn followed him, Parker holding her gun tightly in her hands and desperately trying to focus her vision in the darkness, trying to see who was out there. Rick led them through the main gate and as it creaked open, the screams suddenly got louder as if the person was in more pain than before. Everyone else in the group was running after them with their torches shining across the grass, giving them some indication on where they were. They were in the main field where the cows grazed, but no cows were around, and no one could see any other people. Parker’s heart was ready to beat right out of her chest and she looked at her brother.

“Who is it? Who’s missing?” She asked and Glenn just shrugged.

“I-I don’t know! It could be Dale, it could be Daryl, Hershel, Jimmy, any of them!” He ran a hand through his hair and Rick gestured for the two to follow him.

“Come on!” He yelled and the three sprinted towards the edge of the field where Parker could faintly make out movement in the grass up ahead, but it was too far away to see who was there. Then she heard a familiar voice cry out and her stomach dropped.

“Help! Over here! Help!” Parker’s legs took off, pushing her ahead of Rick and towards the voice.

“Daryl!” She screamed and suddenly saw a lantern up ahead along with Daryl who was madly waving his arms to get everyone’s attention. She heard the footsteps of the others behind her and kept going until she saw the cause of the screams. Dale was lying on the floor with a walker not too far away. It had been stabbed through the head, but she saw the damage it had done and nearly vomited at her feet. Dale’s stomach had been ripped wide open, exposing his organs and allowing blood to pour out of him and onto the grass, staining his white shirt and shorts. He cried out, gripping Daryl’s hand who was staring down at him, telling him that it was going to be okay, that he was going to be fine. Parker collapsed beside the older man, tears already slipping down her cheeks as she grasped his other hand and held his head.

“Dale, just breath, okay? Just breath!” She said over and over, looking over his wounds as the others finally caught up to them.

Rick collapsed beside Parker and took Dale’s head in his hands as the others started to gather round him, gasping and shouting in shock, not being able to believe the horror at their feet. It hadn’t even been 3 hours since they had last seen Dale up and about; telling them all about humanity and how killing wasn’t the way to go. And now he was dying, ripped apart by a skinny, dirty looking walker. And none of them knew what to do.

“Dale, Dale look at me buddy, okay?” Rick said gently as Dale thrashed about and spluttered in pain, squeezing his eyes shut as blood poured out of his open stomach. Parker couldn’t hold back the sobs as Andrea fell to her knees next to her, holding Dale’s arm. Parker let her take over and stood up on shaky legs, stumbling backwards into Shane who gripped her shoulders to steady her. She shook her head and turned away from him to Glenn who was staring at Dale with wide eyes, not moving at all.

“What do we do?” Parker cried, gripping her hair as Carl cried into his mother’s arms beside her.

“Get Hershel! He’s gotta operate on him, now!” Rick shouted to Shane, who turned and saw the farmer and his family running towards them all with another lantern raised.

“Hang on Dale, okay? Hang on.” Andrea said calmly, taking his hand in hers and nodding her head. Dale opened his eyes and looked at her before nodding his head too, wanting to believe every word. Parker felt Glenn wrap his arms around her and she collapsed against him, sobs wracking her body as Hershel and his people saw what was going on. Hershel’s eyes bulged and he knelt down near Andrea, inspecting Dale and his injury.

“What happened?” Hershel asked.

“It’s gonna be okay Dale.” Glenn called out, holding onto his sister and nodding at the older man, running a hand over his face nervously as he saw Dale’s stomach and liver starting to pop up and out of his body every time Dale let out a breath. He couldn’t help but gag and that only seemed to make Parker cry harder.

“Can we move him?” Rick asked, and Hershel shook his head at him.

“He won’t make the trip.” He said and Rick started to panic, his hands shaking wildly at his side.

“You’ll have to do the operation here, Glenn get back to the house and-” Hershel grabbed Rick’s shoulders and shook him.

“Rick!” He cried, getting his attention. Everyone watched with heavy hearts as Hershel shook his head sadly, telling Rick all he needed to know.

“No!” Rick shouted and paced around, not wanting to accept the reality of the situation. Parker sobbed, staring at Dale and then at Daryl, who was still holding the man’s hand, and wishing for it all to stop. Dale was in so much pain, they could all see it, and she couldn’t bare it anymore. As everyone cried, Andrea looked up at Rick with tears in her eyes.

“He’s suffering, do something!” She begged. Rick bit his lip and hesitantly un-holstered his pistol. He raised the gun up to Dale’s head and stared into his eyes.

“Oh god.” Andrea choked out and looked away, not wanting to see it happen. Parker watched as Rick and Dale mentally said their goodbyes, before Rick started to falter. He couldn’t do it. He’d already shot Sophia, he couldn’t shoot another one of their own. It was too much. A hand came up and gently pulled the gun from Rick’s hand and Parker stared as Daryl took over, getting onto one knee and pointing the gun at Dale’s forehead. The older man nodded once at him and Parker clutched Glenn’s hoodie before burying her face into his chest, feeling him wrap his arms around her and grip her tight.

“I’m sorry, brother.” Daryl said quietly before pulling the trigger.


	12. I like you

“Dale could...he could get under your skin. Sure got under mine. Because he wasn’t afraid to say exactly what he thought, how he felt.” Everyone was quietly stood around yet another grave on the farm. It was beside Sophia’s, and twice the length, and they all stared at it with sad eyes. Only Rick spoke; everyone knew he would say the right things on Dale’s behalf. He was good with his words, always speaking the truth, and always willing to stand up and say what the others wanted when they were too afraid to open their mouths. “That kind of honesty is rare.” He said, staring at Dale’s grave with small tears in his eyes. “And brave. Whenever I’d make a decision, I’d look at Dale, he’d be looking back at me with that look he had. We’ve all seen it one time or another. I couldn’t always read him, but, he could read us. He saw people for who they were, he knew things about us. The truth.”

Parker held back her tears, not wanting to cry anymore. She had cried all through the night whilst they buried him; Daryl, T-Dog and Glenn. She had sobbed into her pillow and pulled her comforter up over her head to muffle the whimpers and sniffles that came from her mouth. She didn’t want anyone to see how much it was affecting her, even though they were all in the same boat. Dale had made a difference in everyone’s lives, their way of thinking, and his death had hit them all hard. Parker wasn’t by Glenn’s side this time, she let Maggie hold his hand and rest her head on his shoulder comfortingly. She stood off at the edge, further away from the others, right beside Daryl. At first, the two were tense with one another as everyone gathered for the funeral, but Parker didn’t care if Daryl was uncomfortable with how close she was standing next to him, how her arm brushed against his and she just let it happen. All she could think of was that Daryl had been the one to end Dale’s suffering, and all she wanted to do was thank him. She never thought she would have to think about something like that, but if Daryl hadn’t stepped up Dale could have died in a far more painful way...or worse; returned as a walker and attacked someone else.

Daryl had done the right thing.

“Who we really are.” Rick continued. “In the end, he was talking about losing our humanity. He said this group was broken, and the best way to honour him is to un-break it. Set aside our differences and pull together.” Parker didn’t know it, but Daryl was looking at her with soft eyes, not his typical harsh gaze that met hers whenever she felt brave enough to look his way. He knew she was hurting, it wasn’t difficult to see that, and he knew being angry or rude with her would just cause more problems for them both. He still thought about the kiss, every day in fact, and how he had reacted. He didn’t regret it, not really. He wasn’t ready for that and he wasn’t even sure what he felt for her was real or a side effect of loneliness. He tried not to dream about her at night, but sometimes she would pop into his mind and refuse to leave until he finally opened his eyes. She would just smile at him, still sitting in that beautiful, colourful field, and hold his hand or stroke the stray hairs from his forehead. It relaxed him, he could admit that, but the thought of going any further scared him to death. He didn’t now what to do, how to react, or how to do what she wanted him to do. He scoffed internally, kicking a stone beside his shoe. How pathetic, he was in his thirties and a pretty girl wanted him, yet he had no idea what to do about it. His brother would be teasing the shit out of right about now, if he was still around.

“Stop feeling sorry for ourselves.” Daryl glanced at Rick as he said that, as if managing to read his mind, and felt his cheeks grow warm. He was overthinking everything, again. This was Dale’s funeral, a time to honour and remember him, not to think about Glenn’s sister holding his god damn hand. “Take control of our lives, our safety, our future. We’re not broken, we’re gonna prove him wrong. From now on, we’re gonna do it his way. That is how we honour Dale.” Rick said firmly, looking at every member of the group in turn. Parker bravely pushed her arm into Daryl’s, feeling their fingers brush against each other. Daryl flinched, naturally, and looked down at her hand. It was much smaller than his, more slender and dainty, her fingers long and angular with sharper nails and smoother skin. His were large, calloused, and stubby. But for some reason, that feeling of her pinkie finger slowly circling his made his skin tingle and he felt his chest heave underneath his checked shirt.

Why did this feel so...okay?

The group slowly made their way back to the camp after the funeral, and Parker didn’t leave Daryl’s side the entire time. She kept on the side furthest from the group, her head down and her hair cascading across her face like a curtain, shielding her tired eyes and puffy skin from where she had been crying all night. Daryl just held onto his crossbow with one hand, and allowed Parker to grip his little finger with hers. This was the closest the two would get to actually holding hands, he thought, and allowed himself this small moment to give in to what he had been dreaming about for weeks. Just for a little bit.

Hershel and Rick started discussing plans to move everyone from the camp into the main farm house, seeing as the perimeter fence wasn’t doing a very good job of keeping the walkers out. It was dangerous outside, especially with winter closing in on them, and Hershel had realised that the moment Dale was found lying in the grass the previous night.

“We should have moved you in a while ago.” Parker heard him say as she and Daryl neared the camp, being the last two people to approach. Glenn was already packing his and Parker’s belongings into Patricia’s blue truck and looked up when he saw his sister coming closer. Almost immediately, she dropped her hand from Daryl’s and he glanced up at her, only for her to look straight ahead and make a beeline for her tent, wanting to pack her things and get inside before she froze to death. Daryl tried his best to ignore the loss of contact, his pinkie feeling colder than before, and grunted, heading up the hill to get his own things. Everything he owned could fit on the back of his brother’s motorcycle anyway; it would take about ten minutes to pack it all.

He let his tired legs carry him up the hill, not looking back at the camp, and he put his crossbow down before pulling everything out of his tent and shoving it into the bags on either side of the Chopper. He quickly folded up his cot and hooked it to the motorcycle before starting on his tent; that’s when he heard footsteps behind him.

“You need help?” He was startled to realise it was Glenn behind him, not Parker or Carol like he expected. Daryl looked over his shoulder at the kid and he shrugged. That was all he was getting in response. Glenn awkwardly cleared his throat. “Okay, I’ll be honest, I didn’t come up here to help you.”

“Figures.” Daryl said gruffly and Glenn pinched the bridge of his nose.

“I wanted to...talk to you, Daryl.” He said and Daryl just carried on dismantling his tent, really not liking where this conversation was heading.

“‘Bout what?” He asked. Glenn didn’t say anything so Daryl sighed and stood up, turning to face him. He clenched his jaw and stepped towards him. “Well? You gonna stand there all day?”

“Do you like Parker?” Glenn blurted and Daryl blinked at him, stunned that the kid had the balls to be so blunt with him. Daryl scoffed and turned back to the tent, folding it up and dragging it over to the motorcycle.

“She’s annoyin’.” He said with a grunt as he attached the tent to the side of his bike, hooking the corners onto large leather bag strapped to the engine. “Nosy, too. Like you.”

“Doesn’t really answer my question.” Glenn said quietly.

“No, I don’t like her.” Daryl said, his tone a little harsher than he meant it to sound. Glenn bit the inside of his cheek.

“So...you don’t, you know, really like her?”

“What?” Daryl asked, straightening his back. Glenn seemed to back down slightly, realising who he was actually speaking too. This was Daryl, he wouldn’t like Parker...there was no way.

“Look, when Dale said-” Glenn took a moment to swallow the lump in his throat, before sighing. “He said she meant something to you. I just didn’t understand what that meant.”

“She don’t mean nothin’ to me.” Daryl said simply, collecting the rest of his belongings and shoving them into the leather bags before leaning on his bike. “That clear enough for you?”

“Look,” Glenn said, his patience starting to feel tested. “I just wanted to ask, okay? You don’t have to act so hostile all the time. She seems to like you, or at least...she tolerates you.”

“Thanks, that really makes me feel better.” Daryl said with a roll of his eyes and swung a leg over the bike, leaning back in the seat and gripping the handles.

“You know what I meant.” Glenn sighed and Daryl glared up at him.

“Yeah, I do.” He snapped, making the younger guy flinch. “I know you all think I’m some piece of red neck trash, and maybe you’re right. Parker probably does too, she’s just too kind to say anythin’, right?”

“That’s not what-”

“Just forget it.” Daryl said, revving the engine to life. Glenn stepped back as Daryl turned the bike around before looking at him one last time. “Just remember somethin’. I’m just here to survive, okay? So stop pokin’ your nose in my god damn business!” Daryl warned and Glenn went red in the face. Daryl scoffed. “Tell your sister to do the same.” He revved the engine again and kicked off, hurtling down the hill and leaving Glenn by himself. He huffed and shoved his hands into his pockets before slowly making his way to the farm house where the others were all headed.

“Asshole.”

***  
Parker grabbed the bag with all of her belongings and set them down by the fire place, taking the small, cushioned foot rest beside the couch and sitting down whilst the others unpacked their things. Glenn had gone with the rest of the men into the dining room where Hershel was setting up a pillow and blanket for himself on the sofa. He had given his bedroom to Carl and Lori, and when Parker asked why, she wasn’t expecting the response he gave her.

“In Lori’s condition, a proper bed is the best thing for her.” Parker frowned at him.

“Condition?” She asked, looking over the older man’s shoulder as Lori hauled a box upstairs.  
“What are you talking about, is she okay?” Hershel blinked at her.

“She’s pregnant.” Parker felt her stomach drop. When Hershel realised how shocked she was, he awkwardly cleared his throat. “I thought you knew, your brother did.” Parker shook her head without saying a word. “I’m sorry, I probably shouldn’t have said anything anyway.”

“No, it’s fine.” Thanks.” She then walked away with a far off look in her eye and from across the room Daryl noticed it clear as day. He didn’t do anything about it though; he couldn't. He shook his head and carried on unfolding his sleeping bag and pillow onto the floor closest the large window near the front door, wanting to stay on look out whenever he could.

Parker felt the urge to get some air so she hurried outside, ignoring Andrea’s worried calls, and rushed out onto the porch so she was out of sight. She noticed Shane loading some planks of wood into the boot of his car; getting ready to head up to the new makeshift look out he’d be building on the edge of the farm. Security had to be tighter than ever with more walkers appearing from the woods, and Shane had taken it upon himself to secure small lookout spots across the farm, starting with the small wind turbine at the edge of the fence, which had a perfect view of the forest. Parker sat down in the rocking chair on the porch and rested her head against it, letting out a sigh. She wasn’t going to dwell on Lori’s pregnancy, she couldn’t. She just knew that Lori needed more protection, and until the baby came that was the most important thing now. She rocked the chair back and forth, letting the cool air brush over her skin, before the door in front of her slammed shut.

“Parker?” Carl asked hesitantly. She sat up slightly and smiled at him.

“Everything okay in there?” She asked and he nodded. Carl slowly walked up to her and jumped up onto the porch railing, letting his little legs dangle off the edge.

“If I tell you something, will you promise not to tell my parents?” He asked after a while of silence. Parker looked up at him.

“Depends, is it bad?” She teased. Carl looked down and she leaned forward in her seat. “Carl? You can tell me anything, it’s okay. I’m not a snitch.”

He avoided her gaze for a moment but then eventually looked into her eyes. Carl then reached behind his back, grabbing for something underneath his red jacket, and pulled out a gun. A pistol, in fact, and one that Parker had seen before.

“Is that-”

“I took it from Daryl’s motorcycle.” He said in a rush and Parker stared at in shock, not quite believing Daryl’s gun was in the hands of a child. Parker reached over and took it from him, holding the weighted gun in her hands and staring at the black, metallic body. It shone in the sunlight, and was weirdly enough one of the most beautiful guns she had ever seen. It was strange that it belonged to someone as rough as Daryl...but after she thought about it, this gun might just be the perfect match for him. “If he found out I took it, he’d kill me.” Carl said and she scoffed slightly.

“He wouldn’t lay a finger on you, trust me. I wouldn’t let him.” Parker said, keeping the gun close to her in her lap. “But Carl, you shouldn’t have taken this. You shouldn’t steal from anyone here.”

“I know.” He said shamefully and looked at his feet. Parker didn’t really know what to do. She wasn’t used to handling kids, but now that Carl was the only one around he was one of her top priorities, bar her brother of course.

“Why do you have this, anyway?” She asked, looking up at him. “I’m not against you having protection, but doing it behind your parents back isn’t the way you should go about it. You know better than that, kid.”

“I...I…” Carl couldn’t seem to get the words out, but then he swallowed and gingerly looked up at Parker. He knew he could trust her, it was just being honest about what happened the other night that was getting to him. “Dale...was it my fault that he died?” Parker instantly frowned and pushed herself off the chair, standing over Carl and looking down at him.

“What are you talking about?” She asked firmly and Carl started to panic. “A walker killed him.”

“I’d seen it before.” He admitted. “I-I saw that walker in the woods that day and...I was going to shoot it. It was stuck in the mud, I was throwing rocks at it and stuff. But I-I was gonna do it!”

“I still don’t get how any of this is because of you.” Parker said gently and Carl sniffled, rubbing at his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket.

“It got free, came after me and I-I ran away. If I’d have killed it Dale would still be here.” Parker put the gun down on the chair behind her and put her hands on his shoulders. When he didn’t look at her, Parker took his face and forced him to look her in the eye.

“Listen to me.” She said, wiping a stray tear away. “You need to start being more careful out there. If not, you could get hurt.”

“But I didn’t get hurt, somebody else did, because of me.” Carl said, his voice shaking.

“Look, you did the right thing by running away. You did.” She said, emphasising her words when Carl started to shake his head. “I know it doesn’t feel like it, but running was the safest option. And you came back. Like I said, I’m not against you having protection. But you shouldn’t have stolen from Daryl. You shouldn’t have been wandering off by yourself, it isn’t safe out there. You need back up in case something does go wrong.” She paused before smiling at him, trying to calm him down and comfort him the best she could. “I’ll always have your back, okay? No matter what, you can come to me. To talk, or even just to be around somebody for a little bit. But I’ll always have your back out there too. And I hope I can count on you to do the same for me?”

Carl stared at her, expecting to have been scolded like he usually would have if he had gone to Shane or his parents. But Parker was different, she treated him how he wanted to be treated, and it was like she understood him, even though they were years apart. Carl sniffed and wiped at his eyes, not wanting to cry anymore. “I will.” He said with a nod. “I promise.” Parker smiled and stood up straight.

“Good. Now, what are we gonna do about this?” She pointed at Daryl’s gun and Carl shook his head.

“Daryl will-”

“He won’t hurt you. I promise. Besides, I’ll come with you. I wouldn’t let him touch you.” Carl hesitated but nodded and jumped down from the porch railing, taking the gun and handing it straight to Parker. “Uh-uh. You’re taking it to him, not me.”

“I don’t want to be near it again.” Carl said, stepping away from her. “I don’t like guns anymore, they’re dangerous.”

“Okay. But you’re doing all the talking.” She compromised and that seemed to be enough for Carl. Parker patted his shoulder and pushed him towards the porch steps, telling him to stay put, before putting the gun underneath her shirt and stepping inside. The others were more settled now, having unpacked their things, and she spotted Daryl walking towards the door straight away and headed over to him.

“I need to talk to you.” She said in a hushed voice, not wanting to draw attention her way. Daryl raised an eyebrow at her.

“‘Bout what?” He asked and she looked around at the others, seeing her brother eyeing her up and Lori sat in the corner with Carol. As long as Lori didn’t suspect her son was involved, Parker knew she was in the clear. She’d deal with Glenn later.

“Well, Carl actually wants to talk to you.” She said, nodding towards the door. Daryl peered outside, seeing the kid awkwardly standing there and he grunted.

“You speakin’ on his behalf?”

“Will you just come outside, please?” Parker said angrily, her voice raising slightly and gaining some looks from the others. She noticed her brother tense up and she flushed, but grabbed Daryl’s arm and practically dragged him outside before he could protest.

“The hell, woman!” Daryl growled, yanking his arm away once the front door slammed shut behind them. She ignored him and stepped down towards Carl before turning and looking up at Daryl. “What is this?” He asked, pointing between the two of them.

“I think this is yours.” Parker said and reached back to grab the pistol, holding it out in front of her so Daryl could see it clearly. He stared at it before taking it from her hands and examining it. He then glanced between the two of them.

“You took my gun?” He asked, his voice oddly steady.

“I did.” Carl said suddenly and Daryl looked taken aback.

“You went through my stuff?” He asked. Carl panicked again and looked at Parker for help, but she just raised her eyebrow, telling him to carry on.

“I-I took it yesterday. I don’t know why, I just thought...I thought I should have one.”

“So you stole from me?” Daryl’s voice was deeper and slightly more intimidating than it had been so far and Parker protectively moved closer to Carl, holding onto his shoulder with her hand. Her other hand brushed some hair from her face and she paused at the feeling of her partially missing ear. Her fingers traced the indent just at the very top of her ear, which her hair managed to cover when she wore it down. But when it was up, or in a cap like it was now, the ear was exposed and that meant the others could see it. They’d occasionally eye it up when they thought she wasn’t looking, but Parker always saw them.

“Daryl, lay off, okay?” Parker said after a small silence. His eyes darted to her and she felt Carl move to look up at her, not expecting her to speak on his behalf. “He’s apologising, he’s doing the right thing and returning it to you.”

“He still went through my stuff.” He grunted, folding his arms and making the muscles bulge out; he was trying to intimidate them. It made Carl gulp slightly, whereas Parker just tried her best not to stare for too long. Sometimes it was like he wanted her to stare at him.

“I’m sorry, please don’t tell my parents!” Carl begged him, stepping forward. Daryl stared him down, a deep frown on his brow, but then he snuck another look at Parker. She raised her eyebrows at him, daring him to make a move against the kid, and after a few moments of debating with himself, he seemed to visibly calm down. He sighed and then bent down into a crouch so he was eye level with Carl. Parker pushed Carl forward slightly, knowing it was safe for him to approach, and Carl reluctantly did as she wanted.

“I ain’t no snitch.” Daryl said, rubbing a hand over his face and looking over his shoulder at the house, knowing Rick and Lori were somewhere inside. He looked back at Carl and sighed. “Look just...don’t take my shit again, got it? Or I won’t be so nice next time.” Carl’s eye bulged as Daryl’s hand moved down to the hunting knife attached to his hip and he instantly nodded his head.

“Yes sir.”

“And don’t call me sir neither, I ain’t your damn teacher.” Daryl snapped before standing up. Carl looked at Parker and she nodded at the house just before Carl took off, running up the steps and flying through the door, letting it slam shut behind him. Parker gave Daryl a look once the kid was gone and he scoffed. “What?” He asked.

“Did you really have to threaten to use a knife on him?” She asked, putting her hands on her hips.

“What you talkin’ ‘bout?” He asked, feigning innocence, and it was very difficult for Parker to keep her cool when he smirked at her all of sudden, catching her off guard. “I didn’t do nothin’.” He then walked past her towards his motorcycle, putting his gun away, and Parker just stood there dumbstruck. She then closed her eyes and took in a deep breath before spinning on her heels and marching over to him. Daryl was now sitting on the bike and putting the key into the ignition but didn’t look up at the sound of her footsteps.

“Does it not bother you?” She asked bluntly, and Daryl turned the engine on, practically ignoring her.

“Does what bother me?” He replied, wiping at a small scratch on the side of the bike, grumbling as he did so.

“You’re kidding, right?” Parker scoffed and that finally made Daryl look at her. “You string me around like a puppet, making me wonder what the hell it is you actually feel about me, without ever being honest! What is your deal, man?” Daryl revved the engine and Parker nearly lost it. She reached over and yanked the keys out and Daryl stared at her with wide eyes. Before he could react she turned and threw them a few meters away into the bushes and Daryl jumped up.

“The hell?” He exclaimed glaring at her. When he went to retrieve them, Parker placed a hand on his chest and shoved him backwards so he was in front of her. “Seriously, you’re startin’ to really piss me off.”

“Well, at least we’re finally on the same page.” She snarled.

“What are you-”

“I like you!” She cried, throwing her hands up and Daryl froze. Parker was practically seething with anger, but the truth was out. There wasn’t much she could do about that now. “Seeing as you won't be honest here, then I will be! I don’t really know how much I like you because you piss me off a lot and you’re really distant and that makes things difficult, but I feel different around you! And...and I don’t know how else to explain it other than I like you more than a friend, or whatever we are, should.” She paused, her voice trailing off slightly as she realised Daryl was just staring at her, not making a sound. But he also wasn’t running away, so that was something, right? “That’s why I kissed you the other day, on the hill.” She said, nerves coming back to her. She looked at her feet and scuffed them along the ground. “I-I thought it would be a good idea-”

“It wasn’t.” Daryl said and she went pink.

“Yeah. It probably wasn’t.” She felt herself laughing a little. “But I get brave when I’m drunk so...I did it. I just...I don’t want to lie to myself anymore and pretend like I don’t think you’re attractive-”

“Stop.” Daryl said and started to walk over to the bushes. Parker grabbed at his arm but Daryl flinched and yanked it away.

“Look if you don’t like me back then just say so!” She demanded and he scowled.

“Just leave it, alright?” He said roughly and stomped up to the bushes, searching through them and breaking some of the tiny branches along the way. He was making a mess, and Parker knew Hershel wouldn’t appreciate that, but in that moment she didn’t care.

“Daryl, just tell me the truth!” Parker said, her anger coming back to her. “Just for once, be honest with me!” Daryl finally found his keys and he straightened up before storming over to his bike, pushing past her and sitting down again. He was about to start the engine when Parker ran over and put her hands on the handle bars, making him halt his movements. “Just stop fucking running away from me!” She shouted and she thought she saw Daryl flinch for a second, but she brushed it off. “Every time something happens between us, you leave. You turn around and leave as if it doesn’t mean anything, as if building relationships with people and bonding with them doesn’t matter to you!”

“That’s because they don’t!” Daryl shouted back, leaning up and getting in her face. Neither of them heard the front door open a few feet away, and neither of them saw Maggie step out with Glenn at her side, both of them curious as to what the shouting was all about. They didn’t expect to see little Parker Rhee and scary Daryl Dixon having a screaming match on his motorcycle. At first, Glenn stepped forward to stop it, suddenly scared what Daryl might do or say to his sister, but Maggie grabbed his shirt to stop him.

“Don’t.” She said quietly, pulling him to the side so they were standing behind the porch pillars and slightly out of sight. Glenn stared at her as if she was insane but she shushed him, looking back at the two in front of them.

“Of course it matters!” Parker cried, leaning closer to him automatically. “It’s the end of the goddamn world and you don’t want people around you?”

“No!”

“Why the hell not?!”

“Because people get you killed!” Parker scoffed and folded her arms.

“Oh right, and I’m going to get you killed, am I? How, Daryl?” She cried. He looked away, not being able to meet her gaze, but that only seemed to ignite more fire from inside her. “You don’t try with me, you don’t try with anyone! I want you to be apart of this group and you just pack your stuff up and move as far away as you can, and for what?! So you can have some peace and quiet? Well guess what, the world doesn’t work that way anymore, you can’t just run away from the slightest problem and hope it goes away!”

“Shut up.” Daryl growled, still looking away from her. His fists were wrapped around the handlebars and his knuckles had started to turn white from how hard he was gripping them.

“No. No I won’t shut up.” Parker spat. “I’m tired of this shit, all of it. The way you treat me, the way you speak to me when you’re angry. There’s no reason for you to be like this!”

“I have a reason!” Daryl shouted, stepping off the bike, no longer being able to just sit there and listen to her. He was hot headed and stubborn, just like Parker was, and when they got this enraged it wasn’t going to end well. But neither could stop.

“Bullshit!” Parker exclaimed, throwing her arms up. “You haven’t given me a single reason as to why you act like this with me, everyone else you either ignore or you’re civil with but me? Christ, what do you want from me, Daryl? Huh?! Why are you so distant with me?”

“Because I don’t want you to get hurt!” He yelled, getting right in her face, his breath coming out in deep pants. The two stared at each other, eyes blazing and fists clenched, when from behind them someone shouted. They both turned and Maggie and Glenn, who were still watching from the porch with awe struck expressions, both ran down to see what was going on. T-Dog suddenly rushed out from behind the trees, waving his arms and calling out to them all. Parker and Daryl stepped away from each other, both trying to process what Daryl had said in the little time they had before everyone else charged out of the house.

“What the hell is going on out here?” Rick demanded, his hand instinctively on his gun. T-Dog tried to catch his breath before pointing at the barn.

“He got out!” T-Dog cried. “Randall got out!”

***  
Daryl and Rick inspected the inside of the shed, yanking on all of the doors and any bits of wood that might have been moved. But they found nothing, just the padlock that had been secured on the handle and the cuffs that were still hooked to the pipe where Randall had been sat. It seemed like the kid had disappeared into thin air, and that only made them more suspicious. Rick turned the cuffs over, inspecting the blood dripping from them, and then threw them down before storming back outside to where the rest of the group was.

“The cuffs are still hooked.” Rick announced to everyone as he stepped out into the afternoon sun. They all looked at each other nervously. “He must have slipped them.”

“Is that even possible?” Carol asked.

“It is if you’ve got nothing to lose.” Andrea pointed out and Parker bit her lip before staring out into the woods. Where the hell could he have gone? And for how long? If he was anywhere near his group...who knows what could happen now.

“But we wanted him gone!” Carol said, her voice shaking slightly with fear. “Surely that’s solved our problems?”

“Or it’s brought even more to us.” Parker said, glancing at her brother who nodded.

“She’s right. He could already be back with his group, we have no idea.”

“It’s not safe to leave him out there.” Lori said, holding Carl against her.

“Well, what do we do about it?” T-Dog asked before everyone turned at a shout coming from the woods.

“Rick!” Everyone’s heads snapped around to see Shane appearing through the trees, his face covered in blood and a sour expression across his features. Parker frowned and spun around, looking at everyone. How had she not remembered he was missing? “RICK!” He cried again and their leader stepped towards him.

“What happened?” Lori called out to him.

“He’s armed! He’s got my gun!” Shane replied.

“Are you okay?” Carl called out, gasping at the sight of blood dripping from his nose. It was almost broken and dented to the left, and Parker had never seen Shane look so pissed off before. It made her shiver.

“I’m fine.” Shane reassured him as he stopped near the group. “Little bastard just snuck up on me, clocked me in the face.”

“Randall did that?” Parker exclaimed, pointing at his nose, and Shane nodded before spitting blood onto the leaves at his feet.

“Alright, Hershel, T-Dog!” Rick said loudly, pointing back up at the farm house. “You get everybody back into the house. Glenn, Daryl, come with us.”

“Just let him go, that was the plan wasn’t it, to just let him go?” Carol said nervously but Shane shook his head, taking a gun that T-Dog threw his way.

“The plan was to cut him loose, far away from here, not on our front step with a gun!” Rick said harshly, bringing his gun from its holster.

“You can’t go out there, you don’t know what could happen!” Carol called out as the men started to walk away.

“Get everybody back in the house.” Rick ordered, glancing over his shoulder at them all. He then turned to Shane and walked over to him just as Daryl and Glenn grabbed their own weapons. Parker stared wide eyed as they instantly started to head into the woods, but she raced after them and grabbed Glenn’s arm.

“No, no you cannot go out there!” She begged, trying to drag him back to the house. “None of you can!”

“Parker we have to protect the group!” Glenn insisted, shaking his sister off. “You said so yourself!”

“He’s armed, w-what if he brought his men back!” She cried. “And it’ll be dark soon, do you know how dangerous that could be?”

“We have to do something!” Shane spat, rubbing a hand over his head and stomping the ground.

“My brother is not going out there!” Parker shouted and she felt hands on her shoulders. She looked up to see Rick staring down at her, determination in his eyes, and she felt her body tense.

“Glenn will come back safe. I swear to you, Parker.” He said firmly. “Nothing will happen to him.” Parker sniffed and her eyes started to burn as she looked from Rick to her brother and finally to Daryl. She shook her head and pushed him away before storming off to the house, the others following her without a moment's hesitation. All the men could do was watch her go before taking off after Shane into the woods. Daryl gripped his crossbow tight to his chest and ignored the heavy weight that was pressing down onto it, making it harder to breath. He didn’t say anything, but he was promising Parker the exact same thing. Glenn would come back safe, and if he could manage it, so would he.


	13. Kill The Lights

“They should have been back by now.” Maggie said, staring out of the living room window towards the woods, the chill evening air blowing the leaves around and making her shiver, even though the fire was roaring beside her. Parker stood up from where she was perched on the couch and joined her, moving the curtains back and peering over the wooden planks that Jimmy and T-Dog had nailed to the windows from the outside, keeping them just a little bit safer from walkers than before. She scanned the area and sighed in defeat, knowing Maggie was right. It had been hours now, and like Parker had said, it had gotten dark. The four men were still out there looking for Randall and hadn’t seen any sign of them since that afternoon, and everyone was starting to feel on edge.

“They’ll make it back.” Hershel said from across the room, Beth under his arm. “Try not to worry so much.”

“Glenn’s out there, Daddy!” Maggie exclaimed, walking over to her father with a panicked look. “He’s out there and we have no idea if he’s okay!”

“Stop it now.” Hershel said, nodding at Parker over Maggie’s shoulder. “You’ll worry her even more.” Maggie flinched and looked at the older girl who was still staring out the window. She hadn’t spoken in hours, not to anybody, and they were starting to worry about her too. Maggie sighed and flopped down onto the couch, putting her head in her hands.

“I just want to know what’s happenin’ out there.” She said quietly and Hershel reached over to pat her shoulder.

“I know sweetheart.” He said softly, looking through the screen over the front door. “I do too.”

Parker bit her thumb nail nervously and continued to stare off into the woods. There was an array of things running through her head, but one of them kept sticking out at her, making her uncomfortable.

“Because I don’t want you to get hurt!”

What had that even meant? He wasn’t the one hurting her, this world was. Surely Daryl should know that better than any of them, seeing as he was practically made for the way things were now. Parker shook her head, wanting to get his voice out of her head. But it was no use, so she just let his words flood her mind and make her think about everything he could have meant by that statement. Did he really care about her? She had heard him say he wouldn't countless times, but there was no way even he could deny the little things he had done for her in the months they had known each other. He had told her to hide under the cars when the herd appeared on the highway. He had carried her back to the farmhouse when she had been shot. He had visited her every night when she was unconscious. He had let her kiss his temple. He had let her briefly hold his hand after Dale’s funeral. So many things, yet he was still scared. But why?

“Parker?” Andrea’s voice slowly wiggled its way into her head and she briefly turned to look at her, acknowledging her. “Parker?” She asked again, stepping closer when Parker turned back to the window. “They’re gonna be alright.” She said, resting a hand on her shoulder. Parker didn’t move. “Look at how far we’ve come already, the men won’t start failing now.” Parker still didn’t react, so Andrea sighed and let her hand drop from her shoulder. Andrea turned to walk away when she heard Parker shuffle at the window.

“I’m sorry about Dale.” She said, her voice hoarse after not speaking for hours. Andrea paused and looked over her shoulder. Parker was looking back at her, but with no pity in her eyes. She missed him too, she just knew that Andrea missed him the most. “He was a good man. To you more than anyone.” Andrea felt herself smiling for the first time in days.

“He was.” She nodded. “Thank you, Parker.” The younger girl shrugged.

“Thinking about other people makes me think less about Glenn.” She said. “Doesn't help me stop worrying about him, though."

“You shouldn’t worry, they’ll be okay. You know they will.”

“He’s my brother, I’m always going to worry about him. Whether he’s fifty miles away or right beside me.” Parker said and then sadly looked back at the window. “You don’t stop worrying about family.” Andrea agreed and then walked away, wanting to get a drink from the kitchen to soothe her dry throat. Parker looked off into the woods once again, and internally wished to see Glenn walking out towards her, smiling his big goofy smile and waving, letting her know he was okay. But nothing happened, so she just stood there and waited.

 

***  
Glenn was really trying his hardest not to panic. He had his shotgun in both hands as Daryl slowly stepped over branches and leaves ahead of him, making no sound whatsoever. Glenn on the other hand seemed to step on every damn twig he could find. It was dark now, and neither he or Daryl had seen or heard from Shane and Rick in hours, and that only set Glenn’s body on edge. They had split up, which he wasn’t exactly thrilled about, and had been partnered with Daryl to try and follow Randall’s tracks. So far, Daryl seemed to come up with nothing, unlike what Shane said which was that the little bastard had scurried off towards the opposite end of the forest. But for the past couple of hours, Daryl had been practically silent, just leading Glenn through the woods. The blind leading the blind, he thought with a snort, making Daryl glance over his shoulder with a glare. Glenn gulped.

“So, you think we’ll find him?” He asked after a short while. Daryl didn’t say anything. “I mean, it’s pretty dark out. How can you even see any tracks?”

“I just can.” Daryl grunted. Glenn nodded.

“Cool. Well, let me know when you find something.”

“Will do.” Daryl replied, suddenly veering off to the right. Glenn hurried to catch up, stumbling over some rocks and branches along the way. He could have sworn he heard Daryl tut at him, but he tried to ignore it. Glenn stared at the back of his head, watching him look from side to side at the leaves ahead of him, searching for anything that could point them in the right direction. Glenn started to think to himself about Daryl, which looking back on it later probably wasn’t the best idea considering the few things he now knew about him.

He was rude, and hostile, and clearly didn’t like interacting with people.  
When he’s questioned on his relationship with women, he gets visibly uncomfortable and very defensive.  
He doesn’t want his sister in danger.  
Glenn felt his eyes narrow in anger at the last one, remembering the argument he and Maggie had overheard earlier on that day. The second he heard his sister shouting he had gone outside to try and help her, thinking she was in trouble. But no, instead he found her standing a little too close to a man over 10 years older than her who was looking ready to explode any second. But Maggie had stopped him from going over there and breaking it up, as if she wanted to watch it all unfold. He didn’t get it. Was he the only person who really didn’t like the idea of his sister and some random guy she met during the end of the world to start hooking up? Glenn shuddered, he hated his mind sometimes.

“You’re fallin’ behind.” Daryl barked, making him jump to attention. “Keep up.” Glenn silently nodded and picked up the pace, following Daryl further into the woods. Eventually, he couldn’t keep the silent act going. He had to say something, anything, to get a clear answer from Daryl.

“So, what’s up with you and Parker?” Glenn asked. Daryl instantly stopped walking and spun around, making Glenn stumble slightly.

“Are we seriously gonna talk about this?” He asked gruffly. Glenn blinked up at him.

“Yes.”

“Fine. Nothin’s up. Now let’s go.” Daryl started walking away again and Glenn threw his arms up, almost forgetting he had a gun in his hand, in exasperation.

“Are you kidding me?” He cried and Daryl shushed him, but Glenn stormed up to him. “Are you seriously denying this, again?!”

“I ain’t got nothin’ to deny. Cos nothin’ is goin’ on!” Daryl hissed, glancing around to make sure no walkers were hearing this crazy kid go wild.

"I'm not stupid, Daryl!” Glenn spat. “Look, you obviously care about her so just admit it for once!”

“I don’t-”

“No, you know what? You don’t have to say anything” Glenn said, raising his hand to silence him. “You know why? Because even if you did, I wouldn’t let anything happen between you two.” That made Daryl pause and Glenn knew he had him. “Yeah, you know why? Because she is my sister, and she is my responsibility, and I’ll die before I let her do anything with you! You’re...you’re rude!” Daryl flinched slightly as Glenn stepped closer, getting in his face. “You’re distant, you’re sarcastic, you don’t care about anybody but yourself, all you do is hunt and come back stinking of dirt and dead animals!”

“Glenn-”

“Parker is a good person! A little stubborn and has a slight issue with her anger, sure, but she’s good! Too good for you! Too good for anyone!”

“Glenn-”

“Shut up!” He shouted. “I’m talking! So you had better listen, Parker is not going to ‘date’ you or whatever the hell you want to happen, so just...just, just get over her!”

“Get down!” Daryl shouted and Glenn felt himself being pushed down by his shoulders. Daryl instantly raised his crossbow and fired, and Glenn yelped at the sound of one of his arrows hitting flesh and bone. Glenn scrambled about in the grass as the body of a walker suddenly collapsed beside him and he jumped to his feet, gripping his shotgun to his chest.

“Oh my god!” He hissed, turning to Daryl. “Why didn’t you say anything?” Daryl glared at him, lowering his crossbow.

“I was tryin’ to, but you were too busy yellin’ at me!” He growled and Glenn gulped again, his nerves coming back all at once.

“Yeah, well. Next time try a bit harder.” Daryl scoffed and shook his head.

“Unbelievable.” He bent down and inspected the body before yanking the arrow from it’s head. “You’re attractin’ ‘em, so stop yellin’ so damn loud.”

“I was trying to-”

“I know what you were tryin’ to do.” Daryl spat. “I already told you how I felt about your sister, didn’t I? I don’t want her to die, okay, I’ll admit that.” Glenn’s eyes widened, not expecting to hear that from Daryl at all. “But that’s because she’s a part of the group. She’s your family. If I let her die, you’d have my ass as a trophy above your fireplace.” Daryl wasn’t able to meet Glenn’s gaze, and he knew that would probably show he was lying his ass off, but he didn’t care. He didn't want to give Glenn yet another reason to yell at him.

“I didn’t know you thought like that.” Glenn said quietly, almost embarrassed. Daryl shrugged and looked at the ground.

“S’fine. Just forget about it.” Glenn nodded but Daryl didn’t seem to acknowledge it, he just kept staring at the ground. Then he noticed something, and he frowned. “Hold up, move this asshole out the way.” Glenn cocked his head but bent down to help Daryl drag the walker to the side, putting it near a tree. Daryl then crouched and shone his torch at the leaves, before standing up and raising an eyebrow. “Huh.” He said, and Glenn knew he was on to something.

“What do you see?” He asked.

“There’s two sets of tracks right here.” He said, pointing at the ground, even though he knew Glenn wouldn’t be able to see what he was talking about. “Shane must have followed him longer than he said.” Daryl then slowly moved the torch light to the tree that they had placed the walker against and stepped closer in order to inspect it properly. “There’s fresh blood on this tree. And there’s more tracks.” He nodded at the ground leading off to the centre of the woods. “Looks like they’re walking in tandem.” Glenn moved towards him, wanting to see what he could see, but bumped into him due to the darkness messing with his vision. He blushed as Daryl scowled.

“Sorry.” He said. Daryl shook his head and followed the tracks up into a thicket, Glenn following closely, and then saw the scuffle in the grass, the leaves torn and some branches snapped.

“Yeah, there was a little dust up right here.” He said.

“What do you mean?” Glenn asked.

“I mean somethin’ went down.” Daryl said, shining his light at the ground for Glenn to see properly. The movements in the grass and the broken leaves could tell anyone someone had been here, and a fight had broken out. Glenn frowned.

“It’s getting weird.” Glenn said quietly, looking over his shoulder as the hairs on the back of neck stood up. Daryl couldn’t help but nod in agreement.

“Yeah, weird.” Daryl then jumped as Glenn screamed from behind him, falling to the ground as another walker had snuck up behind him. “Shit!” Daryl cried and raised his crossbow, throwing the torch to the ground. Glenn wrestled with the walker, a young male by the look of it, and once the torch was on the ground and shining right at him, Glenn realised that he knew who this one was.

“Daryl!” He shouted, staring up into Randall’s cold, lifeless eyes as he snapped and snarled at him, his hands trying to claw at his jacket. Daryl tried to focus his aim and eventually managed to shoot Randall right in the side of the head, stilling him and causing his body to fall onto Glenn’s. The younger man groaned in discomfort and Daryl hastily pulled Randall off of him, staring at the body with wide eyes.

“What the hell, thought Shane said he took off!”

“Maybe he got bit.” Glenn said, scrambling to his feet and wiping away the blood that had dripped onto his shirt. “He was out here alone and injured, he couldn’t have been that fast.”

“Maybe.” Daryl muttered and dropped to his knees to fetch the arrow, only to realise something. It didn’t look like Randall had any obvious bites or scratches on him and that made his heart speed up. “He’s got no bites.”

“Yeah, none you can see.” Glenn said, but reached down to help Daryl moved Randall onto his front in order to inspect his back. They found nothing, not even a torn piece of clothing. Glenn let Randall’s body roll back over and he bit his lip.

“He got his neck broken.” Daryl pointed out, examining his neck and feeling how limp it was in his hands. “I’m telling you, he died from this.”

“How’s that possible?” Glenn asked and the two men looked at each other in confusion. A shiver ran through them both, and they looked down at Randall’s body. What had really happened to him?

 

***

Andrea was pacing, and it was really starting to get on Parker’s nerves. She watched her shake her head as she walked from one end of the room to the other, and eventually she let out a heavy sigh and stood up. Andrea stopped and stared at her, as did Maggie, Hershel and Beth.

“I need some air.” She said and walked towards the door.

“Parker.” Hershel called and she reluctantly stopped, looking back at him. “You don’t stay out there too long, it isn’t safe.”

“I’ll be fine.” She said and pushed open the door, letting it slam shut behind her. She took in a deep breath of the cool night air and felt her body relax. She stepped over to the railing and leaned against one of the pillars, folding her arms to keep her body warm, whilst staring out at the fields. They were huge, stretching for miles it seemed, and it was all Hershel’s. How he had kept it this pristine for so long she had no idea, but she was thankful for it, now more than ever.

As everyone inside had been either talking amongst themselves or trying to get some sleep, Parker had sneakily packed a bag filled with supplies, just in case. There was a bad feeling in the air that she couldn’t identify, so she let her paranoia take over and grabbed some protein bars and bottles of water from the kitchen, as well as her sleeping bag, a pillow, and some clothes. She even took some bandages and ammo without Andrea seeing and she knew she would get shit for that later, but for now it kept her mind at ease.

Parker sighed again and took the cap off of her head, letting her hair fall down around her face. She shook it out, and ran her hand through it, before throwing the cap back on her head. It was Glenn’s, like most of the things she owned, and he was wearing a matching one right now, wherever he was. Parker felt some comfort having one of his hats; it felt like he was still with her, and that calmed her nerves. She was just about to head back inside, knowing Hershel would come out at some point to bring her back, but she noticed something shining in the distance. She squinted her eyes and realised it was the light of a torch, and it was coming from the woods. She held her breath as two figures emerged from the edge of the woods, and she watched them approach the house. Her heart hammered in her chest when she realised one was holding a crossbow, and she felt her legs surge forward down the steps. She sprinted towards them and wrapped her arms around the shorter of the two, smiling in relief.

“Thank god you’re okay.” She whispered into her brother’s shoulder and he hugged her back just as eagerly.

“Rick said I’d be okay, didn’t he?” Glenn said and pulled away before looking up at the house. “Is everyone else alright? Is Maggie-”

“She’s fine. We all are.” Parker said. Glenn nodded and walked towards the house quickly, wanting to see Maggie, leaving Parker and Daryl alone. Parker glanced at him only to find he was looking at the house. She then caught both of them off guard by pulling him into a hug. Daryl flinched and grunted in distaste, but Parker didn’t care.

“Thank you for keeping him safe.” She said quietly into his ear and he tried not to shiver at the feeling of her warm breath near his neck. He slowly moved his arms and allowed himself to rest them against her back, patting her slightly. He was clearly uncomfortable, not being used to hugging people, but he was trying at least. Parker pulled back and then motioned for him to follow her, and the two hurried up to Glenn before entering the house.

“Rick and Shane ain’t back?” Daryl asked as he inspected the living room, only seeing the women and Hershel. T-Dog and Jimmy emerged from the kitchen along with Patricia, and Lori was making her way down the staircase.

“No.” Lori said.

“We heard a shot.” Daryl said.

“Maybe they found Randall.” Lori suggested, but he shook his head almost instantly.

“We found him.”

“Is he back in the shed?” Patricia asked.

“He’s a walker.” Everyone went silent.

“Did you find the walker that bit him?” Hershel asked.

“No. The weird thing is he wasn’t bit.” Glenn replied.

“How’s that possible?” Parker asked, resting a hand on her hip. “He had to have been bit.”

“His neck was broke.” Daryl explained, but they were all still confused.

“So he fought back?” Patricia said. Daryl held onto his crossbow a little tighter and Parker noticed him tense up. She didn’t like where this was going.

“The thing is, Shane and Randall’s tracks were right on top of each other. And Shane ain’t no tracker, so he didn’t come up behind him. They were together.”

Parker blinked at him. “He was with him the entire time?”

“Maybe.” Daryl shrugged. “Kinda hard to tell in the dark.”

“Would you please go back out there, find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?” Lori pleaded to Daryl, clearly getting distressed at the thought of her husband being out there any longer than he had to be. Daryl nodded instantly.

“You got it.” He said and headed for the door. Before anyone could stop her, Parker was right behind him, following him down the porch steps. “What are you doin’?” He asked once he realised he was being followed.

“You can’t just go back out there.” She said. “Not on your own.”

“Oh no, you are not comin’ with me.” He said sternly.

“You need back up.” She said. “There’s walkers in the woods, there has been for days now.”

“Parker, I said no.” Daryl said, holding his hand up to stop her when she walked towards him. She looked hurt and he felt his chest ache at the sight, but he couldn’t let her go out there. “Just go back inside. Stay with the others.”

“But you can’t-”

“Parker!” Daryl stepped towards her and looked her right in the eye. “This can’t keep happenin’, you runnin’ off after me, okay? It just can’t. You can’t keep tryin’ to protect me from everythin’.”

“I’m trying to be a good person. A good friend.” Parker said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Yeah, I know. But just go back inside.” His voice was weirdly gentle and Parker felt her heart flutter. “You’ll be safer in there than out here.” Daryl then turned around to continue walking, only to stop dead in his tracks at the sight ahead of him. “Oh shit.”

Parker stared at him before going to his side and peering out into the darkness. Then she saw it too. Walkers, hundreds of them, maybe more, all coming towards the farm. It was if the herd they had seen on the highway had multiplied, and Parker felt her entire body shut down out of fear. There was too many...way too many. They couldn’t handle this amount of walkers, they just couldn’t, even with Rick and Shane here.

“What do we do?” Parker asked quietly and Daryl gripped her arm, pulling her back to the house. They stayed low but ran as fast as they could, hurrying up the steps and bursting into the living room, startling everyone.

“There’s walkers, and a whole lot of ‘em.” Daryl said and everyone rushed to the windows. Glenn, Andrea, Parker and Daryl then made their way onto the porch, staring at the horde in disbelief. Daryl scanned the area, seeing more appear from the sides closer to the house, and he ground his teeth. They didn’t have many options left. The door burst open from behind them and Hershel walked out with Patricia, blinking as soon as he saw all the walkers on his farm. He then turned to Patricia, a stern look on his face.

“Kill the lights.” He said in a hushed tone and she rushed back inside instantly, the lights in the house eventually going dim. Maggie and Carol had followed them and pushed past Hershel to stand beside Parker, gasping at the sight before them. Andrea shook her head and backed away.

“I’ll get the guns.” She ran back inside.

“Maybe they’re just passing, like the herd on the highway.” Glenn offered, but no one seemed to believe him.

“Should we just go inside?” Parker asked, looking up at Daryl.

“Unless there’s a tunnel downstairs that I don’t know about, a herd that size could rip the house down.” He said grimly and Parker ran a hand over her face, debating on what they could do. Suddenly, the door swung open and Lori rushed out, panic evident on her face.

“Carl’s gone!” She cried and Parker spun around, staring at her.

“What?” Both she and Daryl exclaimed at the same time.

“He-he was upstairs, I can’t find him anymore!” She breathed out, trying to catch her breath.

“Maybe he’s hiding?” Glenn said with a shrug, trying not to panic her anymore, but Lori was past that point already.

“He’s supposed to be upstairs! I’m not leaving without my boy!” Lori cried, staring out at the walkers and hoping to god Carl wasn’t out there amongst them. Or worse. Parker was thinking the exact same thing and bit her lip.

“We’re not!” Carol said, grabbing Lori’s arm. “We’re gonna find him, we’re gonna look again!” Lori nodded and ran back into the house with Carol, leaving them all alone again with their thoughts. Parker wanted to cry, or scream or hit something. First the walkers now Carl...they had to get this situation under control. Just then, Andrea came back with the gun bag, setting it down on the porch at their feet and rifling through it. Parker spotted her assault rifle and grabbed it, remembering her ammo was in her makeshift survival bag, and stepped back for the others to grab their weapons. Maggie reached in to pull out two shotguns, keeping one for herself whilst passing the other to a dumb struck Glenn.

“Maggie.” He said gently, wishing she wouldn’t fight with them. He didn’t want her in danger, plus he had no idea if she even knew how to use a gun this size. His questions were answered when she aggressively cocked it.

“You grow up country, you pick up a thing or two.” She said and she looked over at his sister, who nodded at her. This was happening, they were gonna do this.

“I got the numbers.” Daryl said, nodding at the bullets that were at the bottom of the bag. “It’s no use.”

“You can go if you want.” Hershel said. Parker registered that it wasn’t in a rude way, like he wanted Daryl gone, but as if he wanted to give him a chance to get out before shit hit the fan. Daryl frowned.

“You’re gonna take ‘em all on?” He asked incredulously.

“We have guns, we have cars.” Hershel cocked his shotgun.

“We’ll kill as many as we can.” Andrea promised, stuffing ammo into her pockets. “And we can use the cars to lead the rest of them off the farm.” Parker nodded, walking up to Hershel.

“We can’t let them lose this farm.” She said, glancing at Daryl. “We have to help them, we can’t just up and leave after everything they’ve done for us.” Daryl stared at her, then at her brother. He seemed doubtful, but Glenn wasn’t giving up either.

Daryl sighed. “You’re serious?” He asked.

“This is my farm.” Hershel said firmly. “I’ll die here.” Hershel walked away from them and off the porch onto the grass, getting ready to start firing. Daryl could only shrug his shoulders and grab his crossbow.

“Alright. S’a good a night as any.” He said and jumped over the porch railing onto the grass. Parker watched him head over to his motorcycle and turned to her brother.

“What’s the plan?” She asked as Maggie, T-Dog and Andrea crowded around her.

“Jimmy can drive the RV and park near the main gate, keeping out any more that wanna get in. Glenn and I will take Shane’s car, Andrea and T-Dog take Patricia’s truck.” Maggie said, loading some ammo into her back pockets and handing some to Glenn. “Daryl will be on his bike up front, we’ll circle the farm and shoot as many as we can. Once there’s a dent-”

“We lead them out. On it.” Andrea said and took T-Dog to the blue truck on the dirt path. Jimmy, who had been quiet the entire time, making Parker almost forget he was there, nodded and took a pistol before walking over to the RV.

“What about me?” Parker asked, holding her gun close to her chest. Maggie paused then looked at Glenn.

“Parker, you’re staying with the house. You need to keep an eye on Patricia, Beth, Carol and Lori. Help them find Carl, if you can.” He said.

Parker shook her head. “I’m defending this farm.” She stated. “I’ll stay with Hershel. He can’t be on his own out here.” Maggie smiled gratefully at her whilst Glenn looked uncertain, like he always did whenever Parker wanted to do something reckless.

“Thank you.” Maggie said, hugging her quickly. “We’ll come back as soon as we can and pick you two up. If you have to, get the other car and get my Dad out. He’s stubborn, and he’ll put up a fight, but you have to get him out.” Parker nodded.

“I won’t leave him. I swear.” Maggie nodded and walked towards the green Toyota, throwing her shotgun in the back and climbing into the driver’s seat. Glenn and Parker were left alone, and silence surrounded them before the familiar groaning of walkers filled their ears. They glanced at the horde and both of them felt a weight press down on their chests. Glenn looked at his sister and before he could register what was happening, she pulled him into a hug.

“If you get cornered, you take Maggie and drive away from here.” She whispered into his ear, he tried to pull away but she held on tighter. “Listen to me.” She said, and moved away, resting a hand on his shoulder. “You both get out, you understand? Get to the highway and I will meet you there, however I can.”

“Parker don’t.” Glenn begged but she shushed him.

“Just do as I say.” She ordered, then pulled him for a final hug. “You stay alive. You keep Maggie alive. I’ll find you.” Glenn nodded and blinked back tears as he wrapped his arms around her, wanting to keep her close. Their hug was cut short however by the sound of Daryl revving his engine. They looked up to see the cars ready and waiting and Glenn knew this was it. Parker nodded at him and then rushed inside to grab her bag, leaving Glenn to run toward Maggie and the Toyota with his shotgun in hand.

“Where’s she goin’?” Daryl yelled out above the roar of his engine as Glenn and Maggie pulled up beside him.

“She’s staying with Hershel and the others. She’s gonna protect them and keep the house safe whilst we’re gone.” Maggie said, staring ahead of her at the walkers that were now surrounding the barn and the shed, edging closer to the house with every second that passed. Daryl didn’t seem to like her answer and sat back on his bike, staring at the farm house.

“She’s gonna get herself killed, they all are, if she ain’t careful.” He grumbled and Glenn turned to glare at him.

“You don’t care about her, right?” He snapped, catching both Daryl and Maggie off guard completely. “So stop giving a shit.” He then turned to aim his gun out the window. “Maggie, drive.”

“But-”

“I said go!” Glenn shouted and she hesitated before pushing her foot down, the car surging forward and down the hill towards the fences. Daryl took one last look at the house before swearing under his breath, kicking the bike to life, and hurtling after them.

 

***

Parker threw her bag over her shoulders, securing the straps tightly so it wouldn’t slip, before seeing a soft, orange glow coming from the window. She frowned and hurried over, as did Beth and Patricia, before staring with wide eyes at the sight before her. The barn was on fire, the flames licking up the sides and out the door, casting a strong glow across the farm. It seemed to be attracting some of the walkers, leading a few away from the house, and she felt relief start to flood her body.

“Maybe Rick set it to draw them in.” Patricia said and Parker knew she was probably right. That was definitely something Rick would do. A door banged shut upstairs and footsteps thundered down the steps before Lori appeared, rushing into the room.

“I can’t find him anywhere.” she said and spun around, scanning the rooms.

“So maybe he snuck outside?” Carol asked, appearing from the kitchen, having found nothing in there herself.

“What do I do?” Lori shouted and Parker rushed to her.

“Stop it!” She shouted back, gaining her attention. “I’ll go out and look for him, you stay here and protect Beth and Patricia.”

“I am not leaving my son!” She glared but Parker glared right back.

“I won’t leave this farm until I know he’s alive, so do as I say, now!” Parker yelled and Lori started trembling. Parker sighed and tried to calm herself down. “Lori, I promise you. He’s important to me too, I will not leave until I know he’s okay and with his Dad, or with you.” Lori hesitated at first, but then let out a sob.

“Thank you.” She said and let Carol lead her into the living room where the other two women were. Parker then let out a breath and pushed herself outside, pulling her rifle up and aiming at the walkers closest to the porch. She fired, hitting one in the shoulder.

“Shit.” She swore and tried again, getting it in the neck before finally hitting its head. She shot at a few more, managing to get them at least down to the ground, before she heard a shotgun firing not too far away. She turned and saw Hershel standing alone in the field, shooting non-stop at any walker he could find. Parker ran towards him, hitting some walkers along the way, and stood at his side.

“Hershel, you should stay close to the house.” She said, shooting a walker that was only a few meters away.

“I’m not letting them get any closer than they already are.” He said, his firing not ceasing at all. Eventually he had to reload and Parker covered him as he did so, taking down three more walkers before he started firing again. “Are Beth and Patricia okay?”

“They’re inside with Carol and Lori. They still can’t find Carl.” Parker said, nearly shrieking as a walker grabbed her arm. She spun around and used the butt of the gun to smack it’s temple, sending it to the ground. She stood over it and pulled the trigger, making it’s head explode onto the ground. She tried to ignore the sickening feeling in her stomach and looked back at Hershel. He still hadn’t moved. “Hershel!”

“Help the others!” He barked, glancing over his shoulder. “Help them take these sons of bitches down!” Parker blinked at him, never hearing him sound so determined before. “Do it, they need all the help they can get!”

“I can’t use a car and shoot by myself.” She pointed out and shot another walker to Hershel’s right, sending it to the floor before it could grab at his shirt. “Besides, I’d be taking taking a car that Lori and the others might have to use to escape!” Hershel looked around before pointing at the stable.

“Take one. It’ll be faster and easier on the terrain. Find the others and help them round the walkers up.” Parker started to shake her head.

“Are you crazy?! I promised Maggie I’d stay here and help you!”

“I don’t need help!” Hershel shouted, getting angry as the walkers just kept on coming. It was endless. “I’ll defend this house until I die, that is my decision to make, not yours!” Parker stared at him and he turned to look her in the eye. “Please, I have to do this.” Parker wanted to protest, she wanted to keep to her word, but she knew Hershel wasn’t about to back down. Not until the very end. She reluctantly nodded and sprinted towards the stable, knocking any walkers that got too close back with her gun. She kicked one that was right in front of the stable door and yanked it open, before locking it shut behind her.

“This is insane. This is fucking insane!” She hissed to herself. But Parker soon found herself grabbing a saddle and trying to remember how to tighten it correctly around the horse's stomach, before pulling the largest horse in the stable out. It was a dark brown colour, with a long white stripe down its nose. Hershel had told her this one was a male, Cocoa, that Beth had named when she was younger. Parker stroked the horse's mane and leaned her head against its neck. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.” She mumbled to herself, then patted the horse's side and pulled herself up. She made sure her bag was secure and the gun strap was tight across her chest. She let out a breath then moved the gun around so it was in her hands. She aimed at the lock and steadied herself.

“You can do this.” She muttered to herself, and then fired at the lock, shooting it straight off of the door. She then threw the gun back over her shoulder, grabbed the reigns, and kicked the sides of the horse. It neighed before rushing out of the stable. The walkers were all still slowly making their way towards the burning barn and she headed that way, letting the horse gallop through the fields. The wind rushed through the parts of her hair that had fallen from the cap, and she watched as the cars drove from one end of the farm to the other, taking down as many walkers as they could. She noticed her brother sticking his body out of the Toyota window, firing at the walkers past the fence, and she felt some relief in knowing he was okay. The horse hurtled past a group of the undead that snapped their jaws and tried to reach out for it, but Parker was too quick for them. She kicked Coca a little harder, making him go faster, and reached the barn in a matter of seconds. The RV was parked there and she pulled the reigns quickly, noticing the blood splattered windows.

“Jimmy!” She called out. “Jimmy, you in there?” All she got in return was the moans of walkers and she shook her head. She was too late. She then heard screaming from the other side of the RV and she kicked Cocoa once again, making him lurch forward. She grabbed her gun once she halted, and fired at some walkers surrounding something that was on the ground. The walkers fell into a heap and she felt her heart thud in her chest at the sight of Rick and Carl crouching down near a tree. “Rick!” She cried, getting his attention. He stood up, pulling Carl close to him, and rushed over, staring up at her. He didn’t know whether to be relieved that she found them, or confused as to why the hell Parker was riding a horse.

“Where are the others?” He asked and Parker pointed over her shoulder at the farm house.

“Hershel, Lori, Carol, Beth and Patricia are all back there. The others are in cars circling the farm and trying to take these assholes out.” Rick nodded and stared at the farm house.

“Are you okay?” Carl called up and Parker smiled at him.

“I’m good kid, and I'm glad I found you, but you two have to get out of here. Take the Cherokee and get the others out too.” Rick nodded, then glanced down at his silver Python that was in his hand. He then checked his pocket for bullets and handed them to Parker. When she frowned he shrugged at her.

“Care for a trade?” He asked. “It’ll be easier for you to use.” Parker nodded and passed him her own ammo before taking the rifle from her shoulders and handing it to him. She grabbed the Python and the bullets and tucked them into her pocket before grabbing the reigns and looking down at the two Grimes boys.

“You head straight to the house, okay? Don't look back.” She shouted as the walkers and sound of gunfire started to get louder and more frequent. “I’ll cover you.”

“What about you?” Carl asked, stepping closer to her.

“I’ll be fine.” She said, noticing some walkers heading their way. “Now go, we don’t have much time!” Rick glanced at her and grabbed Carl’s hand.

“Thank you, Parker.” He said sincerely and she nodded down at him.

“Get out of here alive, then you can thank me.” She said and motioned for them to go. She watched them run towards the house and fired the Python at a stumbling walker, taking it down before it could grab Carl. He tripped however, his hat suddenly falling from his head. He tried to reach back for it but his father pulled him to his feet and urged him to carry on running before he could pick it up.

Parker watched Rick fire the rifle into a large group of walkers and she waited until they were near Hershel’s side before turning Cocoa around, facing the woods. Cocoa suddenly whined and Parker shrieked as a group of walkers came at her before she could shoot. Cocoa reared up and Parker felt herself tumble to the ground, hitting her shoulder against a rock. She cried out in pain as the walkers drew closer, and she turned her head, holding Rick’s gun in her hand, and watched as Glenn and Maggie’s car drove past. She watched them closely as they drove straight out of the farm’s main gate and onto the dirt track leading onto the road.

Parker smiled. Glenn finally listened to her.


	14. Coming To Terms

Glenn stared in disbelief as he watched Patricia’s blue truck drive in the opposite direction to the Toyota; away from them and away from the farm. He grabbed the side of the door, not wanting to fall out of the car window, and eventually pushed himself back inside.

“Where the hell are they going?” He asked, staring as the truck hurtled at full speed out of the main gates and onto a side road they hadn’t gone down before, disappearing out of sight. Maggie stared too, trying to keep the car steady.

“Should we follow them?” She asked, narrowly avoiding a walker that had stumbled out in front of the car. Glenn glanced behind them and out of the back window, seeing the huge crowd of walkers starting to follow them.

“I’d say yes.” Maggie grabbed the wheel and yanked it to the left, spinning the car around.

“Swing it around, swing it around here.” Glenn instructed, but she suddenly braked hard as a mass of walkers poured out from the woods right in front of them. The car stopped and both of them watched in horror as the walkers surrounded them, banging on the windows. Glenn hastily put his own window back up just before a walker could grab at his shoulder and he pushed himself back into his seat.

“Oh my god.” Maggie breathed as they just kept on coming. “I can’t get through!” Glenn tried to see past the walkers, but they were too close together. He instantly thought of his sister who was still out there somewhere. Then he realised what they had to do. What he had to do.

“Get out.” Glenn said, tears welling up in his eyes. Maggie whipped her head around to stare at him.

“What?” She cried.

“Get off the farm, now!” Glenn ordered, gripping his shot gun tighter as a walker hurled itself at the windshield, smacking its face against the glass and leaving a bloody stain behind. Glenn suddenly felt sicker than he ever had before.

“Don’t say that!” Maggie protested. “The others, we can’t leave them!”

“It’s lost!” Glenn shouted, glaring at her. “Parker said go to the highway, and we’re going!”

“Glenn, we can’t leave her! We can’t leave any of them!” Maggie begged as she started to cry. She screamed as another walker threw itself at the window and Glenn turned to her.

“Please!” He pleaded. Maggie looked at his eyes, seeing them well up with tears. She realised he didn’t want to do this either, he couldn’t bare the thought of leaving anyone behind, especially his twin sister. But they had to get out. The farm was overrun now, they both knew it. They could both see it. Maggie sobbed but put the Toyota into reverse and quickly backed away, pushing past walkers as she did. She then swung the car around and put it into gear, heading straight for the house. They veered round a corner, going past the now blood soaked RV and the barn, zooming past the forest and some walkers that had gathered around one of the horses. Glenn stared in disbelief at it, realising it must have gotten out somehow, and turned to Maggie. “No, no, no!” He cried. “We have to go, now!”

“Do you even want to check if she’s alive?” Maggie shouted, wiping at her eyes. Glenn sat back and stared out of the window before they pulled up alongside the house. It looked completely abandoned and walkers were already inside. Glenn then shoved the car door open, gripping his shotgun to his chest, and jumped out, slamming it shut behind him.

“PARKER!” He screamed at the top of his lungs, frantically scanning the farm for any sign of her. “PARKER! WHERE ARE YOU?”

“Parker!” Maggie hollered, sticking her head out of the rolled down window. “Dad! Beth!” No one replied to them, and they both felt their hearts sink into their stomachs.

“PARKER!” Glenn tried again, sobs escaping his lips. Suddenly he heard a groan and turned to see a walker snap at him. He instantly pulled his shot gun up and fired, hitting it right between the eyes. He shook his head, taking one last look before running back to the car. He jumped inside and slammed the door shut. “Go, just go!” Maggie didn’t hesitate, she put the car into gear again and turned towards the main gate. They both held onto something as she burst through the gate and out onto the track. Glenn let out a long breath before turning around and staring at the farm. It was gone. It was all gone, everything they had. He watched as the barn collapsed to the ground, completely burnt, and as more walkers trudged inside the farm house, destroying everything his group had created. He slowly sat down into the seat and put the shotgun near his shoes. He then rested his elbows on his knees, put his head into his hands, and cried.

***  
Daryl watched the barn burn from a distance. He was alone now, just how he had wanted it from the very beginning. His hands shook slightly from where they were stuffed into his pockets, keeping them from the cold, and he was tempted to get out a cigarette. He glanced around the farm from where he was perched on his bike on one of the tracks across from the main gate. He hadn’t seen anyone for a long time, or heard anything. And that’s what worried him. Where were they all? Had they made it out? Had she made it out?

“You don’t care about her, right? So stop giving a shit.”

He grunted. Glenn was a tough kid when it came to his sister, Daryl knew that better than any of them now. But his heart was still aching to find out what had happened to her. To Parker. Did she make it? Was she with anyone? The worst part was the not knowing, and that was slowly eating away at him as he sat there watching it all burn to the ground. Then he heard a scream. He whipped his head around, and he prayed to whatever was above him that it wasn’t who he thought it was.

He kicked the bike to life and pushed it out onto the road, soaring down the track towards the voice. It was coming from the small field next to the farm house, and he soon managed to see a figure slowly running through the grass towards him, waving their arms in distress. He pushed the bike further and screeched to a halt and stood up.

“Come on! I ain’t got all day!” He yelled, beckoning her over to him.

Carol cried in relief and ran. He quickly motioned for her to get on the back of the bike and turned it around once she was safely on. She wrapped her hands around his middle as he turned around to take one last look around. She stared at him from over his shoulder and frowned.

“What, what is it?” She called out over the roar of the engine and crackle of the flames from the barn.

“You see anyone else?” He asked, raising his voice so she could hear him. Carol shook her head.

“N-no! I was with Lori and the others.”

“Parker!” Daryl said as the walkers started to get closer. “Did you see her?”

“She ran outside to help find Carl, but we never found him. Daryl!” She screeched as a walker got a little too close for comfort and Daryl reached down to grab his pistol, firing at it and swiftly hitting it between the eyes. He stuffed his gun back into one of the bags on the side of his bike and gripped the handles.

“You sure you didn’t see her?” He asked one more time.

“I’m sorry.” She said quietly, trying her hardest not to cry. “I didn’t see her, none of us did.” Daryl sat down properly in his seat and swallowed the lump in his throat. He then growled and kicked the bike back to life, making Carol jump, and they drove down the track and far away from the farm. Far away from everything.

For a long while, all Daryl could see was the bike’s lights in front of him; the fog of the early morning was making it hard to see as he just drove and drove and drove. He didn’t look back, and neither did Carol, as they travelled through the woods and past countless walkers. They must have come with the horde, Daryl assumed. There was no way they were just there on coincidence. Carol held onto his leather jacket tighter and pressed her head against his shoulder. Daryl didn’t move away, so she just shut her eyes and prayed for everyone to be okay. Then she felt tears fall down her cheeks. After a short while, Daryl heard her soft sobs and he turned his head slightly.

“You okay?” He called out. Carol sniffled and shook her head.

“Sophia.” She mumbled, but Daryl still managed to hear her. “Sophia’s grave is there. I’ll never see it again.” She cried into his shoulder and Daryl swore under his breath. He hadn’t even thought of that. Sophia, Dale, Otis. They were all there.

“I’m sorry.” He said and revved the engine, making them drive even faster through the woods. The roads seemed endless, twisting and turning through the trees without giving him any indication of where he was going. Where could they go? They couldn’t just survive out here on their own. Maybe Daryl could, but Carol? She wasn’t a hunter, or a tracker. She barely even knew how to use a gun for christ sake, he’d have to do everything for her. He shook his head. That wasn’t going to happen. They were going to find the others, they had to. They couldn’t have been too far away. Nearly all of the roads led back to the highway, they had to find each other eventually. Daryl’s eyes widened.

The highway.

***  
The red Cherokee slowly pulled up in front of the car with Sophia’s name written across it, the small amount of supplies still completely intact, and Carl stared out of the passenger side window. It was so quiet, eerily quiet in fact, and that put him on edge. He clambered out, along with his Father and Hershel, and slammed the door. He followed his Dad out onto the road and stared at the upturned, abandoned cars.

“Well, where’s Mom?” He asked, looking at his Dad. “You said she’d be here!” Rick didn’t say anything, just stared off into the distance. That made Carl frown. “We gotta go back for her.” He said.

“Carl-”

“No! Why are we running? What are you doing?!” Carl shouted. “Its...its Mom! We need to get her, and not just try to be safe a mile away!” Rick bent down and rested a hand on his son’s shoulder.

“Ssh.” He whispered. “You need to be quiet. Alright?”

“Please.” Carl said, his voice clearly starting to strain. “It’s Mom.”

“Carl, listen-” Rick tried to say but Carl shoved his hand from his shoulder and turned around.

“No.” He spat and ran off behind one of the cars, leaning against the bumper and letting his tears out. He soon heard the sound of Rick and Hershel talking to each other in hushed tones, but he blocked it out. They couldn’t just sit here, they couldn’t. They needed to go back and get Lori. They had to find the others. Parker was still there, Carl had seen her before he and his Dad found Hershel at the house. Had she made it out? Had Daryl and Glenn and Maggie made it out? He wiped at his eyes and instinctively reached up to take his hat off, when he was shocked to discover he was just grasping at air. He dropped it. It suddenly came back to him. He had fallen when Parker shot a walker to the side of him and he’d let it fall off. He kicked the car with his heel in anger. He’d never find it again now. The one thing his Dad had given to him in this new world was gone. And it was his fault.

Carl then heard something groan from not too far away, and he turned his head to see a walker about five cars down. He didn’t run. He didn’t cry out. He just glared at it. He heard footsteps behind him and his Dad was at his side in seconds, gently pulling him behind the Cherokee and out of the walkers vision. Hershel was already there, crouched slightly near the front of the car, and he gestured for Carl to join him. Rick stood in front of his son and held his hand up, telling the two of them to stay still. They all waited quietly as the walker edged itself closer and eventually started to walk past the Cherokee. Rick then motioned with his hand and started to make his way around the back of the car, Carl and Hershel right behind him. Once it was far away enough, Rick lowered Parker’s rifle and turned to the others. Hershel started to shake his head.

“I don’t know how much longer we can stay here.” He whispered.

“I’m not leaving without Mom.” Carl said, looking up at his Dad.

“So we’re just gonna walk away?” Rick asked Hershel. “Not knowing if my wife, your daughters, or the others are still out there? How can you live with that?”

“You’ve only got one concern now.” Hershel replied. “Just one. Keeping him alive.” They both glanced down at Carl, who just blinked up at them. “Nature may be throwing us a curve-ball, but that law is still true.” Rick stared at him, then licked his lips. He was right. Rick then crouched down so he was just below Carl and rested his hand on his shoulder again.

“Carl.” He said gently, not wanting his son to react like he had before. “It’s not safe here. I’m sorry.” Carl bit his lip to keep from crying again and his Dad started to feel an ache in his chest. He didn’t want to leave his wife and unborn child out there, not at all. But his son was here, he was alive. And Hershel was right. He was his only priority right now. “We’ll-” Rick was suddenly cut off by an engine not too far away, and he paused. All three of them slowly looked up and saw a bike appear from behind some of the cars, two people perched on it. Rick got to his feet and stared in amazement as Daryl drove his bike across the road and towards them, revving the engine to get their attention. Then they saw the green Toyota, and eventually Patricia’s old truck. Rick could have cried. Hershel couldn’t help but laugh at their luck and stood up straight as the cars pulled up beside the bike, coming to a stop, and the doors all started to open.

Carol hopped off the bike as Daryl switched it off and rushed to see Carl and Hershel, grinning as she did so. Rick reached out and smacked his palm against Daryl’s hand, the two nodding at each other in mutual respect. They were both secretly glad the other made it out alive. Then Maggie came sprinting up to her Dad and attacked him in a hug, sobbing in relief into his shoulder. Lori shot out of the truck and ran to her son, who was calling for her with his arms outstretched. She cried and lifted him up into her arms as Rick pulled them both into a bone crushing hug. Beth ran to her father and sister and cried into their chests. Glenn and T-Dog hopped out of their respective cars and smiled at the sight of everyone reuniting. Glenn looked around, taking in the people that were here, and he realised something. A deep frown etched onto his face and he gulped. Rick saw his expression changed and he stood up, looking around as well. Then it dawned on him too.

“Where’s Parker?” Carl asked, pulling away from his mother slightly. Everyone suddenly went silent.

“None of you saw her?” Glenn asked, his voice cracking slightly.

“She was with me at the house last I knew.” Hershel spoke up. “I told her to get one of the horses and help you take care of the walkers.”

“Daddy, she was supposed to be helping you.” Maggie protested, giving him a look, but Hershel shook his head.

“I told her no. I’m not as important as the rest of you. She did the right thing. Took off on old Cocoa and headed towards the barn.”

“That’s when she found us.” Rick said, putting his hands on his hips. “She told us you were at the farm house. It was just Hershel when we got there but...I didn’t see her after that.”

“Me neither.” Carol said. “Do you think she’s still there?”

“We have to go back.” Glenn said instantly, grabbing his gun and heading towards the Toyota. Rick rushed up to him and grabbed his arm.

“It’s overrun, going back there is suicide.” He said but Glenn shook him off.

“I have to go back!” He protested. “She might be hurt! It was stupid to just leave without really looking.”

“Glenn, he’s right.” Lori said sadly. “I don’t want her out there alone but the farm is lost.”

“She’s my sister!” He shouted at them all, making them flinch. “I told Maggie to leave back at the farm. We called out for her but we were almost surrounded and we had no choice. But she isn’t back now. I thought she would be and...and I can’t just leave her there! I won’t.” He got into the Toyota and slammed the door, turning on the engine. Daryl then sat back onto his bike and switched his own engine on. Carol span around and blinked at him.

“Woah, you can’t go too! We can’t lose two men!” Daryl looked at her.

“I’m going with him.” He said firmly. “I owe her.” He turned the bike around and started heading towards the road again, when something made him stop. A sound, from not too far away, that he could just make out under the sound of his engine rumbling. Everyone else seemed to hear it too and Rick quickly motioned for Daryl to cut the engine. Once he did, the noise started to become clearer. It was a clicking noise against the pavement and they all frowned, staring at each other, and tried to make out where it was coming from. From inside the car, Glenn had a slight advantage. He could see past some of the upturned cars and leaned out of the window to get a better look, only for his mouth to drop open. Daryl stared at the road ahead of him before he slowly got off of his bike, not quite believing what he was seeing. The sound of the noise was coming from the hooves of a horse, a big horse at that, but no one paid attention to it. They just stared at the rider.

She was covered in dirt and blood, but she sat tall and proud on the saddle. The baseball cap was no longer on her head, but firmly in her left hand, her face now being shielded from the sun by a large, brown Sheriff's hat, whilst a black bag was thrown across her back. Her face was emotionless...until she saw her group. Then she broke out into a grin, and time seemed to start up again.

“Parker?” Carl breathed out and detached himself from Lori’s arms before running to stand beside Daryl’s bike. They all stared at her as she slowly led the horse towards them, the animal calmly making it’s way down the road. Glenn eventually got out of the car and rubbed at his eyes as if he was daydreaming.

“Hey, sorry I’m a little late.” She said as the horse came to a stop right in front of Daryl’s bike. She stared down at him and a soft smile appeared on her lips, and Daryl had never felt relief as sweet as this. Maggie suddenly laughed in delight and rushed to Carl’s side as did Glenn, however he ran right up to the side of the horse. Parker carefully swung her right leg over the horse’s back and jumped to the ground, only to be pulled into a tight hug. She laughed but wrapped her arms around her brother as he shook, tears falling onto her shoulder.

“Don’t ever be late again.” He muttered and she sniffed but nodded. She felt more arms wrap around her and she turned to see Maggie clinging to her side, as well as Carol and Beth. She laughed.

“There’s plenty of me to go around.” She joked and they all laughed, but pulled each other even closer. After a short while, Parker pulled back and wiped at her eyes. She then turned to the smallest in their group and smirked. She glanced up and reached her hand to the hat, taking it off her head and shaking her hair out. Just across from her, Daryl watched her every movement, and really tried to ignore the voice in his head that was telling him how hot she looked in a cowboy hat. It really wasn’t the time to be thinking about that kind of stuff.

“You dropped this.” Parker said and placed the Sheriff's hat firmly onto Carl’s head. He straightened it out slightly before smiling at her and wrapping his arms around her middle. She reached down to kiss his head and playfully ruffled his hair.

“I’m glad you’re safe.” Carl whispered into her shirt and Parker felt her eyes well up.

“I’m glad you’re safe too, kid.” She said and stroked his head, before seeing Rick watching her. She reached behind her back, lifting her shirt slightly, and then pulled a gun from her back pocket. “Uh, Sheriff?” She called out. Rick smirked andshook his head at her, realising even when they thought she was dead she’d be making jokes, and walked over. “I think this belongs to you.” She handed over the Python and Rick gladly took it, passing her rifle over too.

“Thank you. ” He said and she shrugged. She then threw on her own baseball cap and adjusted it, before feeling Carl pull away from her slowly.

“Anytime.” She nodded and Rick hugged her too. It didn’t last long before she heard a small grunt from beside her. Everyone slowly made their way back to the cluster of cars, Maggie giving Parker a small smirk, and Rick let her go. He patted her shoulder and then led Glenn away, who was giving Daryl a small glare over Parker’s shoulder. She rolled her eyes at her brother and turned around. She put one hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow at him. “What? No hug?”

“I ain’t a hugger.” He scoffed.

“That’s the understatement of the year.” She teased, and he actually seemed to crack a smile. Her heart fluttered and she licked her lips.

“You alright?” He asked.

“I think so. Shoulder hurts like a bitch though.” She said, rolling her right shoulder and wincing slightly. Daryl frowned. “Wanna give me a massage to make it all better?” He snorted.

“Stop.”

“Are you okay?” She asked after a moment’s pause. Daryl sniffed and looked at his feet.

“Gotta be.” He said.

“That didn’t really answer my question.”

“I am.” He said. Parker smiled at him once more and nodded, before slowly turning around to grab Cocoa’s reigns, leading him towards the group. Daryl watched her go with a sigh before leaning against his bike. “I am now.” He muttered. He followed her into the middle of the group where everyone was greeting Parker, T-Dog reaching over to pat her good shoulder whilst Lori grinned at her and gave her a one armed hug.

“How the hell did you get out of there?” T-Dog asked as he leaned back against the blue truck. “We didn’t see you at all.”

“Cocoa helped me out a bit.” Parker said, smirking at the horse that shook its head in response. “After I told Rick and Carl to get back to the house, some walkers cornered us and he freaked out. Threw me off his back onto the ground, busted my shoulder in the process.”

“Are you okay?” Glenn asked, examining her shoulder with his eyes but she just laughed.

“Trust me, I’ve had worse.” She pointed to her left ear and Glenn snorted. “Anyway, I managed to shoot the walkers that were coming right for me through the head, got two of them actually. They kind of covered me from the others, masked my smell I guess.”

“Like back on the highway.” Daryl spoke up. “T and I did that too, they couldn’t tell the difference.”

“After that I just laid there for like an hour or so, waiting for them to pass by. Cocoa ran off back to the stable which hadn’t even been touched. I found him and took off.”

“I can’t believe you made it back.” Carol said with a big smile. “I’m so relieved.”

“We all are.” Maggie said, rubbing Parker’s back. Parker felt her cheeks go red, not expecting to have this reaction on returning.

“I’m glad to see you guys made it out too.” She said, biting her lip and trying to hide her face. But Glenn saw, and grinned at her as he pinched her cheeks. She smacked his hand away and turned back to the group. “How did you all find each other, anyway?” Parker asked.

“I saw their tail lights zig-zagging across the road.” Daryl said, pointing between Maggie and Glenn. “I knew it had to be an Asian, drivin’ like that.” Parker walked over and flicked his ear, making him grumble, but Glenn snorted.

“Good one.” He said, shaking his head. Daryl smiled slightly, at both of the Rhee’s. Parker returned the smile, before she looked around and noticed something wasn’t right.

“Where’s Andrea?” She asked. Everyone went quiet.

“We’re the only ones who made it so far.” Rick said grimly.

“And Shane?” Lori suddenly asked, realising he was missing too. Parker looked to Rick whose expression instantly faltered. He wanted to say something, but he couldn’t seem to get the words out. He just slowly shook his head, and the realisation dawned on them all.

“He’s dead?” Parker asked, shock clearly evident in her voice. “How?”

“He...he turned.” Rick replied and Parker felt her blood run cold.

“Shit.” She muttered, glancing at Daryl, who seemed to be thinking the same thing. They never expected someone as tough as Shane to go out like that.

“Andrea?” Glenn asked.

“She saved me, but after that I lost her.” Carol said quietly and T-Dog awkwardly shuffled his feet and looked up at them all.

“We saw her go down.” He said.

“Patricia?” Hershel spoke up.

“They got her too.” Beth mumbled, her voice quivering. “Took her right from me. I was….I was holdin’ her hand Daddy but she just…” She started to quietly sob into Hershel’s shirt and he just held her close. Beth then looked up at her sister. “What about Jimmy? Did you see Jimmy?” She then looked at Parker, seeing as she was the last person at the farm. Her face went pale instantly and she wasn’t able to look the young girl in the eye.

“I-I checked the RV, see if I could drive it. But it was full of walkers. He didn’t make it.” She said and felt her heart break as the young girl cried again. “Beth, I’m so sorry.” Beth just shook her head.

“No, thank you for lookin’.” Parker could only nod.

“You definitely saw Andrea?” Carol asked T-Dog, seeing as she was the only other person from their missing people that could be alive.

“There were walkers everywhere.” Lori spoke up.

“Did you see her?” Carol asked again. When nobody said anything, Daryl shook his head and walked over to his bike.

“I’m going back.” He announced and Parker nodded her head, grabbing Cocoa’s reigns and stroking his mane.

“Me too. I’m not leaving anyone behind.”

“No.” Rick suddenly said, making the two of them freeze.

“We can’t just leave her.”

“We don’t even know she’s there.” Lori said.

“She’s isn’t there.” Rick butted in, standing tall amongst the others. “She isnt. She’s somewhere else...or she’s dead. There’s no way to find her.”

“Are you serious?” Parker argued but Rick whipped his head towards her.

“We can’t go back!” He hissed, holding his gun tightly in his hand. Parker stared at it, wondering if the thought of using it had crossed his mind, and she clenched her jaw.

“You’re not even gonna look for her?” Glenn asked, clearly torn in this situation. Andrea had been a good friend to both him and his sister; this all felt wrong.

“We gotta keep moving.” Rick ordered. “There will be walkers crawling all over here.”

“I say head East.” T-Dog suggested.

“Stay off the main roads.” Daryl agreed. “The bigger the roads, the more assholes like this one.” Parker watched as Daryl retrieved his bow from his bike and walked through the cars, spotting a walker trudging towards them. He fired, hitting it right between the eyes, and everyone watched in silence as it went down. Parker shook her head and gripped the horse’s reins tighter.

“I don’t want to just leave her.” She said quietly to Carol, who nodded and gently rubbed her shoulder.

“I know. I don’t either. But we can’t split up and start wandering the woods again. Not after last time.” Both their eyes drifted to the car that they had painted with Sophia’s name. Parker knew she was outnumbered and nodded. She then glanced up at her horse, then at the Greene family.

“Hershel?” She called out, getting his attention. When he looked up, she nodded at Cocoa. “What should we do about him?”

“He can’t come with us.” Daryl said, walking back whilst wiping the blood off his arrow. “Just another mouth to feed.” Hershel sadly sighed.

“Letting him go may be a death sentence, but it’s the only thing we can do now.” Beth whimpered in his arms and he stroked her hair. “I’m sorry Doodlebug.” He whispered. “I know he was your favourite.”

“Beth?” Parker asked, walking towards her with Cocoa right beside her. “Do you want to help me let him go?” Beth blinked up at her through teary eyes and then at her father, who only nodded in encouragement. Beth hesitantly pulled away from his embrace and sniffed, wiping at her eyes.

“Okay.” She whispered. Parker reached out her other hand, hinting for Beth to take it, and when she did she led both her and the horse towards the edge of the highway. They stopped at the metal railing and hopped over it, both trying to coax the horse to do the same. Everyone watched silently behind them as the horse followed them without question. Parker led Cocoa over to a small patch of grass a few meters from the railing and turned to Beth, handing her the reigns.

“You can say goodbye whilst I take his saddle off, okay?” She suggested.

“Alright.” She said. Parker then turned to Cocoa and started taking the straps from his saddle down. Beth gently stroked Cocoa’s mane and smiled up at him.

“I’m sorry you have to live in this world.” She said gently, and Parker tried not to eavesdrop, but it was too tempting. “It’s not fair. You just want to run around with Nelly and be happy, like you should be. But now...you can be free, Cocoa.” Parker pulled the saddle off of the horse's body and threw it to the side, wincing as her shoulder throbbed under its weight. Beth sniffed again and giggled. “I still remember when you reared up and splashed mud on Maggie, Shaun and I. Stupid thing.” Cocoa neighed in response and both girls giggled. Parker then reached up and stroked across his back, making him shiver and flick his tail. Beth let out a shaky breath before kissing the top of the horse's nose, right on his white stripe. “Run free.” She then rushed back over to her father, who caught her in his arms as she collapsed against him, sobbing. She was losing a piece of her childhood, Parker thought. She was alone with Cocoa now and sighed heavily.

“Thanks for the ride, tough guy.” She grinned, patting his neck. Cocoa whined at her and bucked his head into her hand. “I know, but you gotta go, okay?” The horse bucked again. “You saved my life, you know. Getting me out of there. And maybe I saved yours too. But...you do what she said, okay? Just run, you always have to run.” Cocoa whined one more time as Parker rubbed his head and then nodded. “Okay well, I look crazy talking to a horse so, get lost.” She laughed as he huffed but once she gave his side a slap, he reared up and took off across the field. Everyone watched as Cocoa galloped across the grass and onto something better, or at least they hoped he would find something better. Parker watched with sad eyes as he slowly disappeared from view, and from across the railing, Daryl watched her.

He suddenly realised something in that moment, as he watched Parker walk back towards them, and as everyone else sorted out travel arrangements. He realised that all the lying he had been doing, denying how he felt, it was so pointless. The feeling in his chest was there, it had been for some time now, and it wasn’t going anyway anytime soon. If ever. He felt good around her, even if kissing her was strange and he didn’t know how to be a good person most of the time. But what he felt for her was real, and that might just be enough. So when Carol decided to travel with Rick, Lori, T-Dog and Carl, whilst Glenn and Maggie took Beth and Hershel, Daryl felt himself walking to Parker and tapping her arm, asking her something that he should have asked her a long, long time ago.

“Hey, wanna ride?”

***  
Daryl’s motorcycle was the only thing Parker could hear as he drove them down the narrow road, leading the other two cars behind them far away from the highway. They had been driving for hours now, and none of them really knew where they were going. They just had to get away. Parker gripped onto Daryl’s waist a little tighter as he turned a corner, the bike leaning to the left ever so slightly.

“You alright?” He shouted over the roar of the engine and he felt Parker nod her head in confirmation.

“Yeah just, trying not to die.” She called back and she felt his chest rumble against her hands. She rolled her eyes but kept herself steady. He was laughing at her, but she tried not to care. She had never ridden on the back of a bike before, especially one as large as the Chopper. She wondered if Merle missed it, or more important if he missed Daryl. She wondered where he was now; far away from Atlanta probably. But where could he have even gone? It had been weeks since Daryl had even mentioned his brother, so it was hard to tell how he felt about him. Did he miss him? Did he hate him? Did he want to track him down? She shook away the thought, knowing it wasn’t any of her business, before pressing her cheek against Daryl’s shoulder. She closed her eyes and then felt him turn his head to look down at her for a split second before looking back at the road.

“Don’t fall asleep.” He warned, revving the engine to wake her up. She groaned. “You’ll fall off. Don’t want to explain that to your brother.” She grumbled to herself but shook her head and sat up straighter in the leather seat, pressing her chest to his back. Daryl stiffened and Parker smirked. It was weirdly fun to see him squirm.

Both of them jumped at the sound of a horn from behind them; one of the cars was telling them to stop. Parker whipped her head around to see both the Toyota and the Cherokee slowing down, and she nudged Daryl with her hand. He slowed the bike to a stop and pressed his foot to the pavement, the entire bike tilting to the left as he shifted his weight and turned the engine off. Parker released her death grip on his waist and hopped off the back of the bike as Daryl stood up, twisting his body around to face the others.

“You out?” He asked as Rick walked up to him. Their leader looked annoyed and he nodded.

“Been running on fumes.” He said bitterly. His hand was protectively on his gun, and Parker now knew that was like a safety blanket for Rick. He always had to have his gun near him if he wanted to feel safe. She understood that, having her gun across her back along with her kit bag made her feel more at ease than she had done in days.

“We can’t stay here.” Maggie pointed out as she walked to Parker’s side, Glenn doing the exact same.

“Maybe we take the Cherokee instead?” Parker offered to the group. “Put all the gas into that?”

“We can’t all fit in one car.” Glenn shook his head. “Even if you stay on the bike, there’d be no room.”

“We’ll make a run for some gas in the morning.” Rick announced and everyone turned to him.

“Spend the night here?” Carol asked incredulously.

“I’m freezing.” Carl whined, shivering in his small, red jacket. Lori rubbed his chest and shivered herself, looking around the woods that surrounded them.

“We’ll build a fire.” She said softly.

“I’m gonna go out lookin’ for firewood.” Daryl said, nodding at them. “Y’all stay close. I’ve only got so many arrows, how you doin’ on ammo?” He asked, talking to Rick. He checked his Python whilst everyone else checked their own weapons. Parker had about a box and a half of bullets left, along with some still in her rifle, but it wouldn’t last long with all the walkers roaming around.

“Not enough.” Rick said.

“Is it really a good idea to be out in the open like this?” Parker asked, putting her hands on her hips and surveying the area. “We’re pretty exposed.”

“She’s right. We can’t just stay here with our asses hangin’ out.” Maggie spoke up, hesitantly looking into the woods and only seeing darkness, despite the mid afternoon sun.

“Watch your mouth.” Hershel warned. “Now everyone stop panicking and listen to Rick.” Rick paused for a moment to think, before nodding to himself and walking over to them all.

“Okay, we’ll set up a perimeter.” He began. “In the morning we’ll...we’ll find gas and some supplies. We’ll keep pushing on.”

“Glenn and I can make a run now and try to scrounge up some gas.” Maggie suggested but Rick instantly held his hand up to shush her.

“We stay together.” He hissed, keeping his voice low. None of them needed the attention of walkers right now. “God forbid something happens and people get stranded without a car.”  
“Risk, we’re stranded now.” Parker said gently, not wanting to piss him off anymore than he already looked. “Look, we’ll do whatever you say. But it might be worth having a look around, make sure there isn’t anything we can scavenge nearby, just in case-”

“I said no!” He said firmly, startling her. Glenn rested a hand on her arm, letting her know it was okay, and she relaxed a little. Rick closed his eyes and breathed through his nose, trying to calm himself down. He then slowly opened his eyes and focused on Parker, on her worried face. They all looked worried. “I know it looks bad.” He said, his tone changing to something nicer than before, something reassuring. “We’ve been though hell and worse, but at least we found each other. I wasn’t sure, I really wasn’t, but we did. We’re together. We keep it that way.” Parker hesitated before nodding, and that seemed to be enough for him. “We’ll find shelter somewhere, there’s got to be a place!” He started pacing around, not staying in one spot for more than a few seconds. Parker glanced at everyone, and they all seemed just as unsure as she did. They were in the middle of rural Georgia, they hadn’t passed a house or even a town in miles. Where could they possibly go?

“Rick, look around.” Glenn said, stepping closer to him. He needed him to understand that they didn’t have many options anymore, they were pretty much stranded at that point with nowhere to run. Everything they had was gone, burnt to the ground or infested with walkers. What else did they have? Other than each other. “There’s walkers everywhere. They’re migrating or something.”

“There’s gotta be a place, not-not just where we hold up, but we...fortify.” Rick said with the most determination Parker had ever seen from him. He was desperate, they all knew it. Grabbing at straws, or whatever he could find. “Hunker down. Pull ourselves together, build a life for each other! I know it's out there, we just have to find it!” He spat out and everyone went still. Parker was the only one brave enough to step forward.

“You’re right.” She said and everyone stared at her. “Rick you’re right. We’re gonna find something, somewhere. But not today. Not tomorrow, not weeks from now. You know it isn’t that easy.” She laughed humorlessly and waved an arm out. “Look at all the crap we’ve taken to get this far. We’ve lost people, friends, family. We’ve lost houses and land and our lives. We are going to find somewhere to live, to protect. But you know I’m right.” Rick watched her closely and then looked at his feet, almost ashamed. She sighed. “It’s never going to be that easy.” She said quietly.

“Even if we do find a place.” Maggie said gently, not wanting to anger anybody. “We think it's safe...we can never be sure for how long. Look at what happened with the farm. We fooled ourselves into thinking that was safe.”

“We won’t make that mistake again.” Hershel reassured her. Rick surveyed the area they were in, before seeing some walls across from the road. They were made of stone, and looked like the remains of a small castle. If Parker wasn’t cold and scared and tired, she would have thought it looked pretty cool.

“We’ll make camp tonight, over there.” Rick said, pointing to the cluster of stones. “Get on the road at the break of day.”

“Does this feel right to you?” Parker heard Carol ask Daryl.

“What if walkers come through, or another group like Randall’s?” Beth asked bravely, walking right up to Rick.

“You know I found Randall, right?” Daryl spoke up. “He turned, but he weren’t bit.” Everyone gathered around Rick in a circle to keep warm, but listened closely to what Daryl was saying. None of the understood what had happened to Randall; they wanted answers.

Parker instantly noticed something in Rick’s face change. He looked away from them all, not wanting to meet their eyes, and took a step back. He seemed to be debating something within his own head, and that only made her worry even more. There was something he wasn’t telling them, and it seemed bad.

“How is that possible?” Beth asked him.

“What the hell happened?” Lori asked her husband, and everyone waited with baited breath for Rick to speak.

“Shane killed Randall.” Daryl said, and Rick met his gaze reluctantly. “Just like he always wanted to.”

“And then the herd got him?” Lori asked.

“You said he was bit, were there many walkers out in the woods?” Parker asked. Her brother shook his head.

“Only Randall and one other, but we were nowhere near Rick or Shane. It doesn’t make sense.” He said quietly.

“Rick?” Parker asked, stepping towards him. He glanced at her before swallowing and trying his best to stand tall, to stand with control.

“We’re all infected.” He said after a long pause. Parker felt her stomach drop. No one knew what to say, so they just stared at him. Infected...how…

“What?” Daryl asked, not being able to believe Rick either.

“At the CDC, Jenner told me.” Parker thought back to Dr Edwin Jenner, the man who was the only survivor in the facility, and how he acted as if it was better for them to die than to fight. She never understood his actions back then, thinking he was a coward. But now...now she knew why. Because in reality, there was no hope. Whether they died naturally or not they would turn into one of those...things. She wanted to be sick. “Whatever it is, we all carry it.” Rick concluded.

“And you never said anything?” Carol questioned, her anger starting to bubble up inside her.

“Why, would it have made a difference?” Rick asked and Parker scoffed, running a hand through her hair and sitting on the leather seat of Daryl’s bike, her knees starting to buckle slightly.

“You knew this whole time.” Glenn’s voice was wavering slightly, and Parker knew he was trying to keep it together. He wouldn’t be able to stop himself if he started yelling, especially over something this important.

“How could I have known for sure?” Rick defended himself. “You saw her crazy that man was-”

“That is not your call!” Parker spat. Carol gently pressed a hand on her arm to calm her but she just shook her head.

“When I found out about the walkers in the barn, I told for the good of everyone!” Glenn said angrily.

“Well I thought it best if people didn’t know.” Rick gruffly replied. When no one said anything, Rick took the opportunity to walk away, heading down the road to a small waterfall leading into a lake not too far away from the cars. Parker glared at him as he walked away and then stood up.

“Screw this.” She grumbled and stalked over to the stone walls, kicking leaves and stones as she went, and ignored the lingering eyes of the others on her back. She had to get away for a while, just to calm down and process what Rick had just told them. She sat herself down on the ground and leaned her head back against the stone, closing her eyes and trying to keep her breathing steady. They were all infected, all of them. Jenner should have told everyone that, not just Rick. She threw her rifle away from her and brought her knees to her chest, bringing her chin down to her chest and wrapping her arms around herself. Not even a minute passed before footsteps came towards her. She ignored them, even when the person sat right beside her, brushing their arm against hers.

Daryl placed his crossbow to the side and rested his elbows on his knees, and looked over at her. He took in her vacant expression, the far away look in her eyes, and he felt his stomach twist. He really wished he was good at comforting people, but then again he was dealing with this too. He just did it all internally.

“You okay?” He felt himself asking before he could stop himself, knowing how stupid of a question that was. Parker laughed slightly from between her knees and brought her head up.

“I just found out we’re screwed no matter what happens.” She said with a sad smile. Then she looked at Daryl who was watching her closely, and sighed. “No. I’m not okay.” Daryl nodded.

“Me neither.” He muttered and they went back to silence. Parker found his presence more comforting than she should have, and felt the urge to curl into his side. So after a few minutes passed, and no one else walked over to them, she took a gamble and slowly leaned her head against his shoulder. Daryl stiffened, not expecting to feel her warm skin against his jacket, but then glanced down at her. She was looking ahead of her, not seeming to care about what she was doing. And he just slowly relaxed into her touch.

“I’m sorry.” He said quietly and Parker looked up at him, not moving her head too far from his shoulder. She didn’t expect him to be so warm, and it made her feel a little better.

“For what?”

“For being a dumbass.” He said and she snorted.

“Yeah. You have been a dumbass.” She smiled and he side eyed her.

“I’m not used to...this.” He gestured at the two of them and she shrugged.

“Me neither, not really.” She admitted. “Not since it all started, anyway. Human contact is...scarce nowadays.”

“I ain’t used to it, period.” Daryl said and leaned further against the wall, and closer to Parker. She felt herself smile wider. “My parents weren’t exactly the most loving. Merle was never around. Ain’t ever had a girlfriend.”

“Wait, really?” Parker asked, sitting up and looking into his eyes. Daryl went slightly pink and looked away, but nodded.

“Yep.” He said. “Sorry to disappoint you.”

“You don’t disappoint me. You just...surprise me.” He frowned and turned to her.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re just...different.” She said, shuffling closer and resting her head onto his shoulder again, wanting to feel close to him. Daryl thought for a moment, before slowly resting his head against her own, and found the softness of her hair oddly comforting. As creepy as it was to think about.

“Different bad?” He joked and Parker chuckled before gently reaching down to his hand, slowly intertwining her fingers with his own. He gulped but once she squeezed his hand reassuringly, he felt something jump in his chest. He had never felt this way before, and even though it was scary, he didn’t want it to end.

“No. Never bad.” Parker whispered, and she sighed again, watching her breath come out in cold spurts of air. Even if they were all infected, even if they were all in danger, this moment right here was one Parker would remember forever. And although he wouldn’t admit it, Daryl would remember it too.


	15. The Attic

FOUR MONTHS LATER

“It seems a little too good to be true.” Parker said quietly as Daryl turned the bike engine off, stopping it a few meters away from the giant iron gates of the mansion. Daryl examined the exterior, taking in the weeds that were growing across the lawn, the ivy that circled its way up the sides of the brick walls, and the fact that it looked completely and utterly abandoned. He shrugged.

“Either that or a trap.” He mumbled. Parker bit her lip.

“Maybe it’s better if the others come in too.” She suggested, her hands still gripping Daryl’s waist. “Isn’t it risking a bit too much if the two of us go alone?”

“Rick’s plan made sense. We go in first, scope out the front and back of it, then call the others up to go inside.” Daryl said and kicked the small, metal peg that he used to lean the bike against and stood up. Parker had to remove her hands from him then, and she shivered as her nerves started to get the better of her. That and the fact it was freezing cold and finding gloves in rural Georgia had proven to be a more difficult task than finding food. She ignored the biting cold air that nipped it had fingertips and grabbed her pistol, a handy little gun that had saved her ass the past few months than any of the others combined. Not that she needed much help, Parker had managed to become a rather good shot, as had Carol the more Daryl and Rick taught them, making sure they held the guns properly and could reload quickly if need be. However, Daryl shook his head at her once she raised the gun up. “Hand to hand.” He said and nodded at the hammer that was hanging from her belt loop.

“But the gun is more fun.” Parker pouted and Daryl rolled his eyes at her.

“It’s too early for your complainin’.” He grunted and grabbed his crossbow before heading towards the gate. She sighed but put the pistol behind her back and underneath her shirt, before doing as he said and grabbing her hammer. The group had learned very quickly that melee weapons worked much better when they wanted to be quiet or in a large group. Setting off shots just sent the walkers into a frenzy, and they now only used guns in emergencies. Parker had grown attached to hers, however, and was finding it difficult to stop using it so much. Ammo was starting to get lower and lower these days, she had to conserve it. She gripped the hammer and followed Daryl up the path towards the front gate. It was huge, stretching up nearly 10 feet tall, and she grimaced at the sight of large, black spikes shielding the top of it.

“So much for climbing over it.” She muttered. Daryl snorted.

“Just don’t fall on the spikes. You’ll be fine.” He then threw his crossbow back over his shoulder and swung a leg up to balance on one of the metal railings that ran along the inside of the gate. He pulled his body up with both arms and was soon standing right next to Parker’s head. She watched him as he hauled himself to the top and carefully slipped between the spikes, only to suddenly catch the bottoms of his trouser leg on one of them. Parker winced as he stumbled slightly, but managed to catch himself before he tumbled to the ground.

“You have a death wish, I swear.” She called to him. And in response, Daryl actually grinned.

“You only just figured that out, short round?” He teased and looked behind him, calculating the drop, before launching himself to the ground. Parker waited to hear the shattering of ankles, but it never came, just the sound of heavy boots hitting the grass and a grunt. Daryl stood up from the crouch and shook his hair out. It had grown a ridiculous amount since the farm, now falling into his eyes and reaching the back of his neck. Some stray hairs even covered his ears so they just peeked through the mass of straight, dark brown locks. He looked almost unrecognisable to when she first met him, with his nearly buzz cut down sandy blonde hair. He looked good, and that just pissed Parker off all the more. He didn’t understand how attractive he actually was to her, and she would catch herself staring at him over the light of a campfire or when she was supposed to be on perimeter duty. Glenn and Rick often gave her an earful for not paying attention; Daryl just seemed to revel in it.

Besides, he did the exact same thing to her anyway.

“You should really stop calling me that.” She said, stepping towards the gate and leaning against the bars. Daryl did the same, neither caring about their proximity anymore. It was almost routine, the teasing and the flirting. Ever since Daryl seemed to grow some balls and ignore the urge to shut down around her, to cut off his feelings like he had been trying too, he seemed to open up to Parker in the months they had been on the run. No one else seemed to really pay attention, other than Glenn who seemed to pay way too much attention, so they just kept the remarks and stares to themselves. Daryl sometimes wondered if he was actually 14 and not in his mid thirties, seeing as he was somewhat sneaking around with a girl behind his friends backs. Christ, they even held hands sometimes when no one was looking. There was a voice in the back of his mind, that oddly enough sounded almost exactly like his brother’s, that was telling him to quit being such a pussy, to just move on from her. He was getting attached very quickly and even though Daryl was internally screaming every time Parker would so much as look at him, he loved it. He was addicted to it, even. Seeing her eyes on him made him feel special, and holding her hand was like nothing he had ever experienced before. And he was starting to understand why Maggie and Glenn were trying; maybe they felt like this too.

“And why’s that?” He asked, bringing a hand up to clutch one of the bars. He raised an eyebrow at her and she smirked, only fuelling the fire between them.

“Because there’s a walker behind you and you should probably shoot it before it gets you.” Daryl’s eyes widened and he spun around, crossbow in his hand in seconds, and stood his ground. Once his eyes landed on the space behind him, however, he saw nothing. He frowned and straightened out slightly, lowering his bow.

“You seeing things or somethin’?” He asked, putting his weapon away and turning around, only to find out that Parker wasn’t there anymore. He blinked and stepped forward. “The hell?”

“You gonna move or what?” He jumped and looked up to see Parker perched on the top of the gate, swinging her legs and grinning at him. She wiggled her fingers at him and he scowled.

“Don’t ever do that again.” He scolded as she slowly eased her way down the gate, hopping to the ground once she was close enough to the grass. She brushed some hair from her face and laughed.

“Aw, did I scare you?” She teased, pinching his cheeks, but he quickly swatted her away.

“Shut up. Let’s just go.” He grumbled, going pink, and Parker just chuckled as he led the way to the house, bow raised. She held her hammer up in defence as she carefully stepped forward across the lawn, scanning the area and going into serious mode. Even though the flirting was fun, it couldn’t always happen on the job. Especially when they had found something as good as the mansion. Carl had spotted it when they were driving across one of the country roads a few days ago. It stood tall on one of the hills not too far away and Rick instantly knew that was where they were headed next. Besides, the gates and long brick walls surrounding the property were practically perfect for keeping the horde out, since they were still being followed. Since the farm, the horde had seemed to carry on moving East, exactly where they were headed, and no matter where they turned, the walkers wouldn’t be too far behind. It was starting to get tedious, and with winter still not slowing them down as much the group would have liked, it looked like their luck was slowly running out. Then Carl spotted the mansion, and everything seemed okay again.

Daryl inched his way up the porch after concluding that there was no one in the front entrance to the house, and after Parker noticed that the back door was guarded by even more brick walls, they had no choice but to go in earlier than planned.

“What about the others?” Parker whispered as they stood on either side of the huge double doors. “Should we get them?”

“Nah. We can do this.” He encouraged her. “Just don’t make a sound and don’t hesitate to swing if you see somethin’ move, okay?” She nodded and he seemed satisfied enough to grab the door handle. He counted slowly in his head before pulling the door open, wincing as it creaked loudly at his touch. It obviously hadn’t been moved in a while, and that made Parker’s heart race. Maybe supplies were inside, maybe a lot of supplies were inside. Daryl stepped in, aiming his crossbow out in front of him, and scanned the inside hallway. The huge staircase was right in front of him, spiralling upwards to the first floor, with a small cupboard underneath it. The living room was to his right whilst the dining room that led into the kitchen was to his left. Once he knew Parker was right behind him, he motioned with his finger for her to go into the living room whilst he would take the conjoined rooms on the opposite side. She nodded and raised her hammer as she walked carefully into the huge, dimly lit room. The curtains were closed, with only a sliver of light coming in through between them, which cast an ominous glow into the room. The cream white sofas were placed in an L shape in the centre of the room, a flat screen TV hanging above a fireplace was just across from them beside Parker’s head. She noticed a coffee table with glasses and a few plates scattered across it, as if the people that lived here literally stopped what they were doing and took off. That made her skin crawl. Why were they in such a rush to get out?

She tiptoed through the rest of the room, looking behind the couches and underneath the coffee table in case someone was hiding there, only to find nothing. The room was empty. She sighed, then turned back to leave, only for something on the fireplace catch her eye. Photos lined the top it it, as well as dead flowers with their petals scattered across the floor from where they had dropped. She walked over to them, inspecting the photos, only to discover they were family portraits, and a lot of them. They ranged from two adults smiling widely at the camera, wrapped in each other's arms, to a group of four kids playing with dogs in the garden, and finally the largest portrait that stood in the middle. Parker gently stroked the frame with her fingers as she took in the sight of the parents with their kids, all sat on the sofas and laughing together. They looked so happy, so carefree. But that must have been a long time ago, judging by the state of the house, so she swallowed heavily and walked away from the photo, not wanting to look at someone’s life that was probably completely non-existent now.

The hallway was quiet, and Parker hesitantly stepped past the stairs and towards the small utility cupboard underneath them. She held her breath, raised her hammer, and yanked the door open, only to discover nothing but a heater inside. It was stone cold since it probably hadn’t been used in months, and she sighed, before flicking the switch. She knew nothing would happen, but she still hoped in her mind that they could have another little miracle. Then something happened that she didn’t expect. The boiler spluttered and she stepped back as the pipes shook slightly. They were covered in rust and looked like they were about to pop off of their hinges, but they didn’t. Instead, Parker heard the sound of the boiler starting up and she blinked in amazement as a small red light flashed on, indicating the heater had been turned on. She puffed out a laugh, not quite believing what had just happened, before something warm hit the back of her legs. She turned and looked down to see a radiator near her thighs and could have cried as warm air slowly started to seep out of it. There was no way this was real…

She hurriedly turned the heater off, not wanting to waste any warmth the group could use later on, and shut the cupboard door, resting her head against it and chuckling to herself. This world was surprising her more and more every single day.

“Park?” Daryl’s voice brought her back to reality and she glanced up to see him at the end of the hallway, just watching her. “You good?” She lifted herself from the door and nodded, a smile on her lips.

“Yeah. Better than that, actually.” She then pointed at the cupboard and then down at the radiator. “It still works.”

“What does?” Daryl asked, walking over to her and looking into the cupboard himself. He seemed taken aback by the heater, and he flipped the switch just as Parker had done. He reacted the exact same way she did as the boiler jumped to life and spun around once the radiator heat hit his legs. “Holy shit.” He muttered.

“I know.” Parker laughed, turning it off again. “Let’s not use it again for a while, just in case it’s nearly empty.” Daryl nodded, then looked over his shoulder at the living room. “It’s empty. Nothing in there. What about the other room?”

“Well, there’s some food in the kitchen we could salvage.” He said and Parker’s stomach growled at the thought of a proper meal tonight, or as proper as it could get nowadays. “Plus, the taps work. We have running water, even if it's just for a few days.”

“That means showers.” Parker pointed out and she looked at the heater. “Warm showers.”  
“We should barely use it, though.” Daryl said. “We have to be smart about this, wasting it all now would only kill us quicker.” She snorted at him.

“Forever the optimist.” The two then both headed up the stairs at the same time, weapons armed and ready, and stepped across the landing, taking in the vast amount of bedrooms. The house looked big on the outside, but seemed even bigger on the inside. There were six doors scattered across the landing and both Parker and Daryl inspected each of them, only finding them to be clean and empty, each one leading off to an en suite bathroom.

“Whoever lived here was loaded.” Daryl commented as they searched the fifth bedroom, which appeared to be a teenage boy’s room.

“You’re telling me. I’ve only see places like this in the movies, never thought I’d be living in one.” Once every bedroom and bathroom was searched top to bottom, the two headed back out onto the landing, concluding that the house was pretty much the perfect place for their group to stay. Daryl put his crossbow across his back and sighed, looking over the banister and down the stairs.

“We should get the others.” He said, and was about to walk back downstairs, when he froze at a creaking noise coming from somewhere in the house. Neither he or Parker moved, wanting to make sure it wasn’t caused by the two of them, before hearing it again. Parker’s gaze slowly turned upwards, and she gulped as the creaking continued right above her head. Then she noticed the hatch in the ceiling with a small cord hanging from it. Daryl noticed it too and they looked at each other. They hadn’t realised there was an attic. “I’ll go first, you pull the cord and bring the ladder down, but stay behind it. If someone fires I’ll be the first to know.”

“Don’t say it like you’re ready to get shot in the face.” Parker said with a frown, walking over to the cord and reaching up, gripping it between her fingers. Daryl shrugged.

“You gotta be ready to get shot in the face everyday. It could happen.” Parker ignored him and yanked on the cord, pulling the hatch open and sending the ladder down towards them. She stumble back as it hit the wooden floor and the two froze, waiting for someone to appear in the opening above them. But no one did, yet there was still creaking coming from above them. Daryl grunted as he climbed the ladder and slowly put his head through the top, finally seeing what was sneaking around above them. He froze. “Parker.” He called down, and she stared up at him, not being able to see his face as the attic was nearly pitch black from where she was standing.

“What? What do you see?” She asked, putting her hammer back into her belt loop. Daryl still didn’t move.

“Don’t come up.” He said and starting climbing up the ladder until his body disappeared into the room. She shook her head and stood at the base of the ladder.

“Daryl, what is it?” She called out, but got no reply. She sighed heavily and started climbing, flinching as the ladder creaked underneath her weight. Once she placed her hands on the floor of the attic and hoisted herself up, she noticed a small window shining white light down across the room, making it seem a lot more eerie than she previously thought. Parker stepped into the light and saw Daryl crouched down at the far side of the room, looking at something. “Daryl?” She said quietly, getting his attention.

“I told you not to come up here.” He said, looking over his shoulder. Parker watched as he slowly stood up and took a few steps back so they were standing beside each other. Then she saw it, and her stomach dropped. A small body was lying on the floor, on top of a blanket with a pillow at one end and a flashlight with an empty bottle of water beside it at the other. It didn’t move at first, but suddenly the tiny head jolted upright. Parker watched in horror as the body turned over, so she could see it completely, revealing a small boy not much younger than Carl, with dirty, red hair and white eyes. It’s skin was cracked and greying, and he was practically skin and bones. He must have starved, she thought, and she felt her eyes well with tears as the tiny walker snarled at them, his throat gurgling and choking from how dry it was. Daryl looked at her sadly as she continued to watch the walker’s failed attempts at standing up, but due to it being too skinny, his bones almost showing through his skin, he couldn’t stand. He was so frail and weak, Parker almost felt sorry for it.

“You should go downstairs.” Daryl said quietly. “You don’t need to see this.” She shook her head.

“Just do it.” She whispered hoarsely. “You’ll be doing it a favour.” Daryl looked at starved walker, realising the kid must have been so scared that he hid in the attic until he literally starved to death, and sighed.

“Alright.” He took his crossbow out and aimed it at the boys head. He didn’t pull the trigger for a moment, just staring at the boy, before he turned and looked Daryl right in the eye. Then he fired.

They buried him outside, where they found more graves that varied in size, and Parker watched patted the earth down flat once it was done. She stepped back and looked at graves, and she realised that this made up the entire family she had seen in those photos in the living room. She sniffed, tears threatening to fall, and wiped at her eyes. Daryl came up behind her, putting the shovel on the ground, and stood by her side. Slowly, he reached down and pulled her hand into hers, intertwining their fingers and squeezing. Parker let out a shaky sigh before looking up at him.

“We should get the others. They’ll be wondering what’s taken us so long.” Daryl just nodded, and without removing his hand from hers, he led her out the back garden and onto the front lawn. They walked up to the main gate and he used his left hand to put fingers into his mouth to whistle, the signal the group had developed amongst themselves after weeks of scavenging. After a moment of waiting, they heard the cars approaching and they dropped their clasped hands, still not wanting the others to see. The Toyota carrying Glenn, Maggie, Beth and Hershel pulled up first, and her brother hopped out, glaring at her as he did so.

“The hell took you so long?” He snapped.

“We scoped out the house.” Parker said without any emotion in her voice; it had all drained when they buried the boy. “It’s all empty. No walkers.”

“Are you insane?” Glenn exclaimed. “What if something had happened to you? You were supposed to stick to the plan, not go off and-”

“Leave it, man.” Daryl said, stepping closer to the gate and giving Glenn a look. That only made him glare harder.

“Don’t start, Daryl.” Glenn warned and Parker just wanted to shut them both up. She hated the way her brother had treated Daryl the past few months, giving him the cold shoulder and taking any chance he could to bring him down or snap at him. He obviously knew something was going on between them, even if it wasn’t much, and he clearly wasn’t happy about it. Parker just wanted him off her back already; this had been going on for three months straight and it was starting to get to her head.

“Let’s just get this gate open, shall we?” Maggie stepped in, also fed up of her boyfriend’s attitude, and cocked her shotgun. Parker and Daryl moved out of the way as she shot the lock off, the sound echoing throughout the small, wooded area. Seconds later, the Cherokee carrying the rest of their group pulled up, stopping behind Daryl’s motorcycle. Rick and Carl jumped out of the front, Carol and T-Dog following them, before Lori slowly pulled herself out of the very back of the car. Parker glanced down at her small bump underneath her tight, vest shirt and then looked away. She didn’t want to think about the fact they were dragging a pregnant woman across miles of land, stressing her out as well as barely feeding her. But then again, none of them were exactly getting fed the right amount each day.

“Is it secure?” Rick asked once Daryl let him know the entire house had been searched. He nodded.

“It’s ours now. There’s some food still inside, as well as a boiler that still works.” Everyone perked up at that.

“What about the water?” Carl asked. Parker smiled down at him, feeling better that her little partner in crime was by her side again.

“Still works. But we gotta be careful we don’t waste it all in one go.” She said and he nodded, staying by her side as she led them all into the house. Carl had stuck to Parker like glue since they left the farm, and Parker wasn’t entirely sure why. She appreciated his presence, always cracking a joke or helping her with perimeter duty every now and then, but she felt like he was doing it just to avoid talking to his mother. Lori had only really talked to Carol and Hershel for the past few weeks, Rick barely looking her way and Carl ignoring both of them pretty much every day. Parker didn’t want to be in the middle of a family argument, but she just carried on being his friend. She felt like he needed one more than he let on.

The group followed her inside and stared in awe at the vast amount of space that was now theirs. Parker told them about the amount of bedrooms there were, nearly all of them having double beds to share, and everyone seemed to brighten up at the thought of sleeping in an actual bed for the night, not on the ground or in the cars for a change.

“You got a pretty good eye, little man.” T-Dog said, patting Carl’s shoulder. “Can’t believe you found this place.”

“Parker and Daryl cleared it out.” Carl said, blushing slightly, and Parker chuckled.

“This is your win, not ours. Enjoy it.” She then looked upstairs and smirked. “In fact, you get to have the first shower.” Parker glanced at his parents, who were both smiling and nodded at her. Carl stared at her in shock and then at the stairs.

“For real?”

“You don’t see any of us arguin’.” Maggie said with a grin and Carl instantly hugged Parker, wrapping his tiny arms around her middle. She rolled her eyes at his cuteness but patted his head.

“Okay, let’s get our stuff inside and everyone moved in. Bring the cars inside the gate and close it, too.” Rick ordered once everyone started to perk up a bit. They all nodded and went back outside. Parker stayed on the porch with Beth and Carl as the others opened the gate wide enough for the cars to fit through, and everyone watched as the Toyota and the Cherokee pulled inside, parking to the left of the house whilst Daryl’s bike was parked on the opposite side, but facing the gate. Parker smiled. He did that on habit now, as if he needed to make a quick getaway, and she was thankful he thought ahead most of the time.

The group then grabbed their things, Parker’s bag, that was filled to the brim with weapons and supplies now, as well as a sleeping bag, was stuffed in beside Beth’s in the Toyota’s boot, and she pulled it onto her back, helping the younger girl yank hers out too. Once their things were all hauled out of the vehicle's, T-Dog and Glenn shut the gate and tied some thick wire they had found at an abandoned department store a few weeks ago around the bars, keeping it secure enough for walkers to stay out. Everyone rushed back inside and up the stairs before stopping in the hallway on the first floor, taking in the amount of bedrooms to choose from.

“How are we gonna do this?” Lori asked them all, and no one spoke for a moment. Hershel then stepped forward.

“Bethy and I will have a room. Carl, Rick and Lori, you took the biggest one.” He said.

“Glenn and I can take another, that’s three.” Maggie said, hoisting her bag higher under her arm.

“Parker, how about we share one?” Carol suggested with a smile and Parker nodded in agreement.

“T and I will take the one at the front of the house. Better look out point.” Daryl grunted and T-Dog seemed to be pretty happy with that, walking to the furthest door from them and pushing it open. There were two single beds inside, the room clearly being a guest room, and he set his things up on the bed closest to the door, leaving Daryl with the window side. He preferred it that way anyway. Rick and his family made their way to the master bedroom, Beth and Hershel going to the one next to them, whilst Maggie, Glenn, Carol and Parker walked towards the two middle bedrooms. Parker smiled at the single beds in the room and Carol couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

“I can’t believe this place is still standing.” She breathed, staring out the window at the amazing view of the woods and beyond that, the city of Atlanta far off in the distance. Parker looked at it too, throwing her bag onto the bed. She missed it sometimes, the bustle of the city and the rush to get to classes on time back in College. But she knew that was never coming back, so she pushed it to the back of her mind and laid down on the bed.

“Let’s just enjoy it.” She said quietly, feeling her eyes starting to close. “Let’s enjoy it before it goes away.”

***  
When it was Parker’s turn to shower, which was one of the longest waits of her life seeing as after Carl had showered she had practically forced nearly everyone else to to take one before her, she was almost scared to turn the water on in case the heat had completely vanished or the water itself was murky. Maybe it had all been a dream, finding the house and the heater and running water. Maybe she was about to open the bathroom door and discover it covered in filth, not empty and just as clean as the original owners had left it. But when she pushed the door open and held her breath, she was relieved to discover it was still as pristine as she originally saw it. The bathroom led off from her and Carol’s room, and Carol was fast asleep in the other room, giving Parker enough time to shower and change in peace without waking her up.

They all had very little shower supplies, but had managed to ransack an abandoned Wal-mart before the horde started to catch up to them, so Parker had stocked up on shampoo and conditioner as well as body wash that she tried to barely use whenever a shower presented itself. Which it very rarely did. She had her small shower bag in her hand and gripped it tight whilst she locked the door, setting it down on the toilet seat and daring to take a look at herself in the mirror. She looked tired, just like the others, with dark shadows under her eyes and her skin paler than normal due to the lack of nutrition and water. Once again, she was getting skinny again, and she hated it. Back on the farm, they were having good, full meals almost every night thanks to the chickens and cows Hershel raised and the meat Daryl hunted, plus the vegetables that were growing were definitely an added bonus. But now, they had to survive on the very little food they could find in any houses or stores nearby, and it had been getting harder and harder to find any the further they travelled.

She was still strong, however, and fast on her feet. And she was grateful that she could still take down a walker or take off in a sprint if she noticed any other groups getting to close to hers. That had only happened once since they left the farm, a small group consisting only of men on motorbikes near the edge of the forest. She had alerted the others straight away and they took off in their cars only a few minutes later. They couldn’t take any chances, Rick had made that very clear from the get go, and risking their lives just to talk to other human beings was definitely a risk. Parker shook her head, not wanting to remember the amount of times they had run away or gotten cornered or any of that. She just wanted to focus on the shower that awaited her and the chance to finally wash her hair after weeks of ignoring it. It was matting to her head and she had shoved a cap on top of it for the past few days just so she wouldn't accidentally be reminded of her hygiene every time she ran her hand through it.

She turned her back on the mirror, not wanting to take in her appearance any longer, and stared at the huge shower before her. It was big enough for more than one person she realised, and her cheeks started to heat up at the sudden thought that flashed through her mind, especially since Daryl’s room was only one door down from hers. She had learnt in the few months on the road that Daryl was very private about his feelings and even though he had started talking to her more, even being brave enough to start flirting with her - although Parker assumed he probably didn’t realise he was doing it most of the time; he was pretty clueless like that to be honest - and that had been something she never thought he would do. But he wasn’t as difficult to break as she first though, especially since he was by her side every chance he got and had allowed her to ride with him on his bike for three months straight.

She switched the shower on and after waiting a few seconds for the water to stop spluttering and move into a heavy stream onto the tiled floor, Parker felt and saw the heat coming off it, and she could have cried with joy. She peeled off her clothes, knowing that she would be washing them that night when she got a moment alone, and grabbed her shower supplies before hopping in. The water felt like heaven on her dirty skin and for the first few minutes she just stood there with her face completely under the shower head and feeling the full force of the water.

Eventually she grabbed her flannel and used some body wash to scrub at her arms, legs and stomach. She watched as the water slowly started to turn brown with all the dirt and grime that was coming off with it, and smiled once the water began to go back to its original, clear state. She knew she clean enough then. She grabbed her razor and shaved her underarms, then started soaking her hair in shampoo and scrubbing her scalp close to raw. The scent of the shampoo, which was wafting into the air around her, smelt strongly of strawberries and cream and she felt her mouth water. Christ, she was so hungry.

“You shouted hello, but I can’t hear a word you say. I’m talking loud, not saying much.” She sang, not caring how loud she was singing as the water seemed to drown out her voice. She didn’t sing anymore, she just didn’t, besides there were no good instruments to accompany her and she felt...weird, without singing with a piano or a guitar. However, given the fact this was her first shower in weeks and she felt like she deserved to sing, she belted out the words and smiled until her cheeks hurt. After rinsing out the shampoo and slathering on the conditioner, she spent the time shaving her legs and in between her thighs. There wasn’t really much point anymore, seeing as no one was going to be seeing her naked anytime soon - not that she didn’t want a certain someone too - but it felt good to shave away the hairs and feel her smooth skin after weeks of her legs being furry.

“I’m bulletproof, nothing to lose, fire away, fire away. Ricochet, you take your aim, fire away, fire away. Shoot me down, but I won’t fall, I am titanium.” It was almost funny how stereotypical the song was, but it was one of the last songs she had listened to before everything went to shit back in Atlanta, so it was the first song she thought of. Eventually, she realised she had to get out of the shower and rinsed out the conditioner before switching the water off and grabbing a large towel from one of the railings. She wrapped it around her body before wiping the steam from the windows and mirror. She then grabbed her shower supplies up, stuffing them back into her bag, and opening the door...only to come face to face with a very red, and very bashful looking, Daryl Dixon.

“Oh my god!” Parker shrieked and grabbed the towel to hold it closer to her chest, dropping her shower supplies all over the floor. Daryl jumped back, also managing to trip over the corner of Carol’s bed and send him crashing to the floor. Carol, who had still been sound asleep, shot up out of bed and shouted in surprise, not expecting to be woken up so suddenly. It didn’t even take a moment for the bedroom door to burst open and for T-Dog, Glenn and Rick to rush in, guns raised. “No! No, christ, everyone calm down!” Parker exclaimed, holding her hands up to stop them once she knew her towel was secure. The men stared at her, then at Carol and then down at Daryl who was still lying on the floor surrounded by shampoo.

“What the hell is going on?” Rick hissed at them, not wanting to make too much noise in the house. They didn’t know if there were any walkers outside the mansion walls, and it was better to be safe than sorry. Parker gulped and looked at the floor, embarrassed of shrieking so loud.

“I-I came out of the shower and…Daryl was there and he scared me I...sorry I yelled.” She said, not looking anyone in the eye.

“Wait, were you standing outside the bathroom door this whole time?” Carol suddenly said, getting out of bed and looking at Daryl accusingly. Before he could even respond, though his gaping mouth and bright red cheeks suggested he didn’t have much of an answer, Glenn stepped forward, lowering his shotgun.

“Were you watching her in there?!” He growled and Daryl glared at him, pride and anger taking over him once again.

“Hell no!” He spat. “I ain’t no damn pervert!”

“Could have fooled me.” Glenn said, getting in his face. Parker’s eyes widened as Glenn's grip on his gun tightened and T-Dog, who was thankfully closer to the two and also realising the potential danger in the situation, stood between the two men.

“Guys, guys!” He said, pushing their chest and putting more distance between them. “Don’t do this, alright?”

“You stay away from her, you got that?” Glenn warned, pointing at Daryl and jabbing a finger into his shoulder. Daryl grunted and scoffed at him, but Glenn stood his ground. “I mean it, Daryl. If I see you anywhere near her again I’ll-”

“You’ll what?” Daryl stepped forward, pushing against T’s hand. The two men glared at each other, neither backing down, and Rick finally took the initiative and pulled on Glenn’s arm.

“Come on. Stop this. It’s childish and we need to focus on staying quiet, and staying safe. Not stupid quarrels.”

“He’s right.” Carol said, standing beside Parker and resting a hand on her shoulder. “It’s getting late, we should all have dinner and go to bed. We’re exhausted. We need the rest.” Rick nodded and looked down at Glenn, who was still shooting daggers at Daryl through his eyes. Parker couldn’t look at any of them, and just waited until she heard the sound of footsteps before lifting her head. She watched Carol shutting the bedroom door and then spinning on her heels to face Daryl, who was now against the wall. “You need to explain yourself.” She said firmly, crossing her arms.

“Can I talk to her, alone.” He said suddenly, catching both women off guard. Carol hesitated, then glanced in Parker’s direction, unsure about what to say.

“It’s okay.” She said with a tiny smile. Carol sighed then looked back at Daryl.

“Call if you need anything.” She responded quietly and reluctantly walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her, and leaving the two alone once again. Silence filled the room and neither Daryl or Parker looked at each other, almost as if they couldn’t physically bring themselves to do so.

“I heard you singin’.” Parker looked up at the sound of his gruff voice. Daryl was still against the wall, bracing himself and looking at his dirty fingernails. She saw him swallow and she felt her body start to tingle with anticipation. They were used to be alone now, but with her completely naked underneath that towel and two beds right next to them...Parker’s mind suddenly started to run wild and she tried to keep her breathing steady. “I could hear you from my room down the hall.” He continued, finally looking at her.

“Oh.”

“I ain’t ever heard you before.” He said, pushing away from the wall. “And it got me thinkin’.”  
“About what?” She asked, holding on to the top of her towel like a safety blanket. One part of her was telling her to go into the bathroom and change, because he was a lot more exposed than she wanted to be. But then another part of her wanted to throw the towel to the ground without a second thought. She ended up gripping it tighter to her chest. Daryl licked his lips and cleared his throat.

“I was thinkin’ that you were right about a lot of things.” He said, stepping closer to her. “You were right about me not gettin’ to know you. That I don’t try, I’m distant. And I...I want to change that.” His eyes pierced into hers and she felt the atmosphere in the room change. The weird sexual tension she felt was still there, but something more emotional started to appear, something more meaningful and powerful. He was opening up to her…

“You don’t need to do anything you don’t want to do.” She whispered and he gave her the tiniest smile.

“I want to.” He took another step forward, so she could feel his breath on her skin, and she shivered. And Daryl didn’t even pretend to act like he didn’t notice. “This is all new to me. How I feel...I don’t normally feel like this about people. Merle is the only person I’ve ever missed, but when I didn’t see you at the highway, I thought the worst. And it hurt. It physically hurt, not knowin’ if you were alive or dead. I don’t want to feel like that anymore.”

“I’m not going anywhere.” Parker said but Daryl shook his head.

“That’s not what I meant. It hurt because if you were gone, I never got to say anythin’ to you about how I felt, why I’m such a jackass all the time. I wouldn’t have got to tell you the truth.” Parker felt his hand suddenly reach down to her free one, and his thumb gently stroked the back of her knuckles. She looked up at him after staring at their hands, and she took in the honesty in his features.

“Tell me now.” She said.

“I don’t want to lose you.” His voice whispered out and that made Parker’s heart nearly beat out of her chest. She never thought she would ever hear something like that from Daryl, ever, nor so soon. But then she realised the flirting, the friendship, the bond they had formed since the farm. Daryl hadn’t only just started opening up to her now, in this bedroom, but he had been doing so for months now. Everyday was just another step in the right direction, and she felt a big smile pull at her lips.

“You won’t.” She promised and Daryl snorted a little.

“Don’t.” He looked down, letting his now grown out bangs fall over his eyes. Parker cocked her head and reached up, letting the top of her towel fall against her skin, and pushed the hair away from his forehead so she could see him better. They stared at each other again for a while, just taking in the other’s presence, before Daryl slowly bit his lip. “I’m sorry I pushed you away.” Parker frowned. “At the farm when you…” She felt heat rush over her and she chuckled.

“That was stupid of me, I should never have done that.”

“Not never.” Daryl said and she raised an eyebrow. “Back then, maybe not...but it made me realise that I want to do it again.”

“You do?”

“Yeah. Can I?” She had never seen him so nervous before, so intimidated by something so innocent as a kiss. But she knew better than to call it ‘just a kiss’. Daryl Dixon didn’t kiss people, he rarely even spoke to people, so kissing somebody wasn’t just casual to him. It was a huge deal.

“You don’t need to ask.” She said quietly, feeling herself move closer to him on instinct. His body did the exact same thing.

“Trust me,” Daryl said. “I do.” He then slowly leaned his head down whilst she moved her up, until their noses gently brushed each other, and Daryl paused.

“It’s okay.” Parker whispered, pushing her lips to his so they ghosted over his as she talked, and she grinned when he shivered. “I won’t hurt you.” That’s all Daryl needed before he pushed himself over the edge and their lips finally touched. At first, they didn’t move, but then Daryl’s hand gripped hers tighter and Parker moved her hand from his hair to the back of his neck, gently stroking the brown locks. Parker gently moved her lips on his his, encouraging him to do the same, and Daryl hesitantly followed her lead. He felt stupid, not knowing how to properly kiss somebody. He had kissed women before, he really had, but he was never any good at it. They were always drunk or high, being at a house party in rural Georgia did that to you, and they were usually dared to kiss him by their friends or Merle, who just wanted his little brother to finally get laid. But Daryl hadn’t kissed anybody since he was in his twenties, so kissing Parker was like doing it for the first time all over again.

She was slow and gentle with him, not wanting to scare him off or freak him out like last time. But it was nothing like last time. She wasn’t drunk, she wasn’t sad, they weren’t out in the open. She was very much sober, and seemingly happy, and they were alone in her new bedroom. Daryl sighed against her mouth and pressed his lips harder to hers, making her grip his hair. She didn’t even mean to tug on it, but the reaction she got made her stop kissing him altogether. He moaned into her mouth without even realising and he frowned when she pulled away.  
“Did I...was I bad?” He asked tentatively, trying to read her expression. She just stared at him and as the seconds ticked by Daryl wondered if she was alright.

“You should have told me you like having your hair pulled.” She whispered in the most seductive voice Daryl had ever heard and he felt his soul leave his body.

“I, I like what?”

“Come here.” Parker pulled him into her again and kissing him harder than before, not that Daryl minded anymore. She then reached up and gently ran her fingers through his hair, and his body started to relax against hers, allowing his hands to reach down and rest on her hips, stroking the towel that covered her slightly damp skin. Then he felt her tug at his hair and he let out another moan, this time hearing himself and opening his eyes. He was about to pull away, embarrassed that he actually made that ridiculous noise in front of her, but Parker kept a firm grip on his hair and it was like he was frozen. Something inside Daryl snapped the second she pulled even harder on his hair and he whimpered, he actually whimpered for god sake, and Parker wanted to push him on the bed right there and then.

“Jesus…” She breathed as she pulled away again, all whilst Daryl let his head fall to her shoulder in a desperate attempt to feel close to her.

“I can’t believe I sound like that.” Daryl groaned, hiding his face in her neck and feeling the heat rush to his face.

“Don’t you ever apologise for that.” Parker snorted and rubbed his scalp where she had been tugging, making him sigh. Daryl eventually pulled away and swallowed the lump in his throat. Parker then looked outside the window and saw that it was starting to get dark and she groaned. “I need to get ready. We should be eating soon.” She then looked back at Daryl and smirked. “As much as I want to stay here with you...you’d better go.”

“Why?” He asked with a frown and Parker motioned at her towel, making his eyes widen. “Oh. Shit. Sorry.” He hastily moved to the door and was about to open it when he felt a hand wrap around his wrist, pulling him back. Daryl didn’t have time to react before Parker kissed him again, only for a few seconds, before pulling away and grinning at him.

“See you at dinner.” She said and opened the door for him. Daryl stepped out and turned to watch her close the door and left out in the hallway alone. He stared at her door for a minute or so, suddenly forgetting how to function, before shaking his head and putting his head in his hands.

“Damn it.” He muttered, and quickly went into his room to grab his crossbow; wanting to go out hunting to focus on something other than the fact he just made out with Glenn’s sister and almost busted a nut when she pulled his hair. Christ, he thought, she was going to kill him before the walkers did.

***  
“Well, for a tiny ass rabbit, he sure did taste good.” T-Dog said, setting his plate down onto the carpeted floor of the living room whilst everyone around him either finished their plates or chuckled along with him. It felt good to laugh again, after so long of being trapped or running from walkers. They could finally have a break. Parker was lying across the couch, taking up the whole space, and watching everyone talk with tired eyes. After Carl had gotten up from the couch to take watch on the porch, ignoring his mother’s protests entirely, Parker had taken it upon herself to stretch out and put her feet up. No one else sat down, they all had their own spots on the separate couch or the extra chairs littered around the room, or like T-Dog, were sat on the floor. She yawned and stretched her arms out, rubbing her eyes and letting them focus on the person sat in front of her. Daryl had gotten braver since their little encounter earlier on, and had taken it upon himself to sit near her head, meaning she could secretly play with his hair without anyone noticing.

Glenn had been giving him murderous looks throughout dinner and Parker had eventually gotten so fed up that she threw a fashion magazine from the coffee table at his head. At least that made Maggie laugh properly for the first time in weeks. Parker did her best to ignore him after that and carried on chatting to Carol or Beth all whilst dancing her fingers across Daryl’s head and feeling him sigh in appreciation. She smiled when he discreetly nestled his head closer to her, encouraging her even more, and she chuckled when he shut his eyes and rested his arms on his knees, acting as if he was going to sleep. As long as Parker kept touching him, he’d never really be able to fall asleep.

“How long has Carl been out there?” Hershel asked Rick as the others talked around them. Parker, sitting on the right side of Hershel, lifted her head and looked over at their leader who had finished his meal not long after her.

“About an hour.” He grunted, looking out the window. Lori, who was awkwardly sitting on the arm chair by his side, was also looking out the window. Neither could actually see him, the porch was just around the corner, but they could both sense him. Parker bit her lip and gently patted Daryl’s neck, making him open his eyes. She slowly sat up, stretching her arms up, and stood up from the couch.

“I’ll go get him, it's my turn.” She said, shaking the sleep out of her body. Rick glanced at her and shook his head.

“It’s alright, I can-”

“You need rest more than any of us, Rick.” Parker said, raising an eyebrow at him as he began to stand up. “I can do it. I need some fresh air anyway.” She said, throwing her brother a pointed look over her shoulder, making him scoff. Rick shrugged and sat back down.

“Send him up to bed when he’s ready, will you?” Lori called and Parker nodded, smiling over her shoulder at her, before taking her gun from the small table in the hallway, and heading outside. It was dark out now, the clouds completely gone and the sky a deep, navy blue. The stars were out and twinkling, giving off the only light source other than the lights of the candles inside the living room. Parker shut the front door quietly before stepping onto the porch and trying to get her eyes to adjust to the darkness.

“Hey, Carl?” She said, walking down the steps. “You out here bud?” When she only received silence in response, she felt a frown etch onto her face. “Carl?” She called out a little louder this time. The wind picked up around her and she shivered as her hair whipped around her face.

“Carl!” Still nothing. Parker started to panic and rushed around the side of the house, checking both sides before rushing back to the front of the house. She held her handgun close and hurried towards the main gate where the cars where. She was about to push one side of the iron gate open when something rustled in the bushes ahead of her, stopping her dead in her tracks. She froze, as if she had been turned to stone, and watched as one of the bushes aggressively rustled and shook, sending leaves to the ground. She held her breath as a walker stepped out of the darkness, stumbling through the brambles and falling to the ground only a few meters away from her.

“Carl!” She called out, only to feel something rush up behind her. She wanted to scream, to call out for the brothers and get their attention, but a hand clamped itself over her mouth and she felt herself being dragged backwards before she reach out and grip one of the bars. Her handgun fell from her hand when she was suddenly shoved to the ground, her knees being kicked and sending her to the grass hard. She grunted as a body pressed itself on top of her and she tried to thrash around, even though her head ached from where it was being pressed into the earth, but whoever it was had already gotten a firm grip on her arms, pinning them to her sides. That’s when she realised it was more than one person, and she felt fear rush up her spine.

“Don’t worry, pretty girl.” A man’s voice breathed into her ear, making her shudder in disgust. “We won’t hurt ya if you don’t struggle.” Parker tried to twist around but the man was way too heavy, and he had her pinned down too hard for her to get loose. She then saw someone else walk up near her face, wearing heavy combat boots and ripped jeans. She glanced up as much as she could in her awkward position, only to see a greasy, blonde man looking down at her. He had a jagged smile and wicked eyes, and Parker wondered if this was how it all ended for her. In the hands of two disgusting men, not knowing if Carl was alive or dead, with her friends, her family, only metres away.

“He’s right you know.” The blonde said, and Parker wriggled around, making both men chuckle. “You should really stop struggling.” She then watched in horror as his boot moved backwards and then swung towards her face, connecting with her nose and sending her into darkness.


	16. Pretty Girl

Wherever she was, Parker knew it was somewhere dirty. She felt grime press against her cheek as she slowly came too, instantly feeling the deep throb of a bruise across her face the minute she opened her eyes. She grunted, but tried to ignore it, and blinked away the dizziness. She could barely see anything, and at first it was so dark she wondered if her vision had just vanished, but eventually her eyes adjusted and she saw tiny beams of light coming through something above her. They were jagged and thin, but she could just make out wooden panellings and she realised she must have been in some sort of basement. There was a hatch leading upwards, and the desire to run for it was almost overwhelming. But she couldn’t move.

“What the hell?” She croaked out into the blackness as the foreign feeling of her arms being bound behind her back started to appear, and she managed to sit up against what she assumed was a wall before twisting her wrists. It was rope, and tight too, and she flinched as the fibres burned into her skin with every little movement. She tried to kick her legs out, but she felt the same tugging and tightness around her ankles and she cursed under her breath. A feeling of claustrophobia seemed to wash over her and she began to panic, her breathing turned into hard panting and she scanned desperately around whatever room she was in to see if there was something, anything, that could cut the rope.

“Stop moving.” A voice from within the darkness made her freeze instantly. Parker slowly turned her head as she realised something was to her left, and she gulped down her nerves as best she could.

“W-what?”

“If you move too much they’ll hear.” It was a girl’s voice and she didn’t sound that much younger than Parker. Was she tied up too? “And if you they hear you, they’ll come down here.” The girl shuffled and Parker felt an arm brush hers, making her shudder.

“They? Who’s they?” She demanded, feeling her voice shake and crack at the lack of water. She really needed something to drink, she suddenly realised, and she wondered how long it had been since she had been knocked out. She remembered being outside the mansion, wandering around with her gun in her hand. Why had she even been out there? She remembered how it felt to be pushed down and sat on, then the voices.

“Don’t worry, pretty girl.”

Parker could almost feel the boot kicking her face again and she winced at the dull throbbing in her forehead. She shook it off and twisted her body to face the girl. She wanted to see what she looked like, how she was holding up. Was she beaten too? Taken from another group? Did she know a way out?

“Tell me who they are.”

“They’re monsters.” The girl whispered back, and Parker could just make out her silhouette turn towards her in the darkness. “That’s what they are.”

“You mean those two men?” Parker asked. “The ones that took me.”

“They aren’t men.” The girl spat back, venom dripping from her tone of voice. “They are evil, filthy...they brought you here for the same reason they brought me here.”

“What reason is that?” The girl went quiet for a long time and Parker counted every second before she finally answered her question.

“It’s the end of the world. Why do you think two men would kidnap random girls?” A chill ran down the back of Parker’s spine, and she started to feel sick to her stomach.

“That’s...that’s insane.” She muttered. “No one is that crazy-”

“Look around you!” The other girl hissed and Parker could feel her face getting closer to hers. That’s when something above them creaked. They both paused and looked up at the floorboards. Dust rained down upon them as somebody walked over head, and the tiny cracks of light went out for a second before reappearing. Someone was right there, as if waiting for them to speak again. Challenging them. The girl looked back at Parker and scoffed. “I’m guessing they haven’t touched you yet?”

“What?”

“You’ve only just woken up, right? You don’t remember anything else after they took you?” Parker thought hard. She remembered being taken away...but something else was off. She didn’t remember anything from that moment to this, but something before that...something important. Then she heard someone moan across from her and she sat up. Carl.

“Oh my god. Carl!” She whispered, hearing another small moan and some shuffling.

“Oh, he’s awake again.” The girl said without any emotion and Parker whipped her head round to stare at her.

“Again?” She exclaimed. “He was awake before this?”

“He woke up when those men brought you down here.” She said, looking over at Carl’s tiny, frail body. “He started screaming, trying to get you to wake up I suppose. They shut him up pretty fast.” Parker felt tears brimming in her eyes and bit her lip.

“How bad did they hurt him?” She asked sternly. “Did you see?” The girl hesitated for a moment then sighed.

“They punched him pretty hard. He fought back. He’s a tough kid but...they kicked him in the ribs and he was out like a light after a minute or so.”

“Jesus christ.” Parker breathed out. She then pushed herself away from the wall, onto her side, and started shimmying her way towards Carl’s figure in the darkness. Small beams of light from the room above her settled on his shaking form and she crawled her way towards him before getting to her knees and nudging him gently with her shoulder. “Carl? Sweetie, can you hear me?” She said quietly in his ear. Carl rolled onto his back with a groan and thanks to the light shining down, she could just make out his eyes starting to open and adjust to the darkness, just like she had a few minutes ago.

“P-Park-” He tried to say, but started coughing and spluttering, the wind clearly having been knocked out of him. Parker hushed him and smiled down.

“It’s okay. I’m here.” She said gently and Carl could just barely nod in response. “I’m gonna get us out of here, okay? Just hang tight.” She then turned to the girl, who she could see more clearly the longer they stayed down here. Her eyes were adjusting a lot better than before and she could see crates and shelves lining the walls. She even saw a small mattress in the corner of the room with a worn out blanket lying across it. How long had this girl been put down here?

“Hey.” Parker called out softly to her. “What’s your name?”

“Martha.” She said tiredly. “You?”

“Parker. And this is Carl. We’re with a larger group, in a mansion somewhere in the woods, close to the main road. Those men, they took us away and we need to get back to warn the others.”

“Why?” Martha asked.

“Because they know where we live!” Parker frowned, not understanding why she wasn’t taking this more seriously. Did she not care? Did she not want to get out? “I have to get them out of there before those men go back for them.”

“You won’t get out.” Martha said, turning her back on Parker. “You won’t.”

“Then help me.” Parker pleaded, shuffling closer to her. Martha flinched and pulled her knees to her chest. She wasn’t tied up...how could she not be tied up? “How...why did they not tie you up too?” Martha turned her head.

“Because they know I won’t try to leave.”

“That’s insane…”

“No, you know what is insane?” Martha suddenly cried out and Parker felt the urge to shut her up. She was the one that told her to be quiet in the first place, right? Why was she suddenly making so much noise? “That there are dead people walking around outside! At least if I’m here, even if it’s with them and the things they do...I won’t die. Not yet.”

“Don’t say that.” Parker growled, anger starting to get the better of her. “You can’t just give up like that!”

“Well tough shit. I already have.”

“You said they were monsters, that they were dirty and evil but you’re staying here with them?” Parker almost laughed at how ridiculous that was. “The hell is wrong with you? Why don’t you just try and get out?”

“I have tried!” Martha said, lunging forward and getting in Parker’s face. “You really think I haven’t tried to leave?! They just hurt you more and for longer, if you even think about leaving!”  
Parker suddenly had a thought and she swallowed the lump in her throat before blinking at Martha.

“How do they hurt you?” Silence.

“Figure it out, seeing as you think you're so smart.” She scoffed and Parker could see her figure turn further away from her. She shook her head and scooted across the floor towards the other girl.

“What you've gone through...no woman should. Nobody should. But you can't just live like this because of what's outside.”

“You don't get it.” Martha’s voice was trembling, and Parker heard soft sobs escape her lips.

“No. I do.” Parker thought back to when everything first started, when she and Glenn watched the news all night shaking and crying on the phone to their mother and sisters. They had promised to go back to Michigan, to find them again, but their mother had told them not too. She didn't want them to risk their lives anymore than they might have too, and that they had to stay together no matter what. Parker blinked back tears; she’d never see her mother again. “I know how scary it is, how horrifying it is. I've seen it all.”

“Have you seen your own boyfriend get ripped apart?” Martha spat and whipped her head around to face her. Parker was taken aback but tried to hide it.

“No. Is that what happened to you?” Martha went quiet again. “I'm so sorry.”

“It just happened. One minute we were sat with his father in his bed, he’d passed away during the night. Then the next his guts were just...on the bed in front of us.” Martha sobbed into her hands. “Jay never even said goodbye.”

“Sometimes you just can't say goodbye.” Parker said quietly. She wondered what Glenn was doing, if he even knew she was gone yet. A part of her wanted him to find her, to bring her home. But then again, she didn't want him to get hurt either. Parker then looked at Martha with fiery determination and cleared her throat. “We’re getting out of here. You aren't staying here anymore.” Parker then scanned the room, looking on the shelves for anything useful, when she spotted something glinting in the dim light.

At first she thought it was too good to be true, that there was no way those men would be dumb enough to just leave scissors lying around, but then she looked to Martha and nudged her slightly with her foot and got all the confirmation she needed.

“Yeah. They use them down here when they…” She slowly trailed off and Parker shuddered. “They cut my clothes off.”

“Do you think you could get to them?” Parker whispered, not wanting anyone above them to possibly hear. She had no idea how soundproof this room was, but she didn't want to rick it. Martha scoffed.

“So I cut you loose you, and you help the kid. Then what? We’re still trapped down here, they have the key!” She pointed upwards and Parker shook her head.

“If we make them believe we’re still tied, then attack when they least expect it, we have a chance.” Parker argued. “We can do this, Martha. We can all go back to my group, back to the mansion where it's safe. My people, they can protect you.”

She scoffed. “You got taken. A little boy get taken; they can't be that good at protecting you.”

“You don't understand.” Parker was starting to get agitated. “That was different. You just...please just trust me!”

“There are men in your group, right?” She asked. “Should I trust them too?”

“Yes.”

“I trusted those men when I lost Jay.” She said harshly. “And they treat me like scum. Like I'm nothing. How do I know your people won't be the same?”

“Because I would never let any of them hurt anyone unless they deserved it. Unless they threatened my people's safety. My family’s safety.” Parker narrowed her eyes in a glare, warning Martha without using words.

The other girl froze suddenly, then glanced up at the wooden panelling. She then sighed and shakily got to her feet. She then looked down at Parker.

“Keep an eye on the boy.” She said tiredly and hobbled slowly over to the scissors on unsteady feet. Parker breathed out a sigh of relief before turning to Carl.

“Carl, Carl?” She whispered close to his ear once she was near enough. He shuffled about on the ground before slowly opening his eyes and looking at her. Parker felt her stomach drop at the sight of a black eye, and tiny bruises littering his features, but held her breath and smiled down at him. “We’re gonna get out of here, okay?”

“Where...where are we?” He choked out and Parker wished that she could hold him close to her; she wanted to comfort him. He was just a kid, he should never even be in this situation. She just needed to get him back to his parents, he was her priority now. Nothing else mattered, not even her own life, except for Carl’s.

“I don't know, bud.” She said gently. “But it doesn't matter, we aren't staying any longer.”

“No...you are.” Parker turned at the sound of Martha’s voice behind her and she stared in disbelief as the young girl stood with the scissors pointed down at Parker. They were dangerously close to her face, and she felt herself tense up.

“Martha...what are you doing?” She asked calmly, wanting to keep her voice steady. At least then she would feel like she was in control.

“I've been here for too long.” She growled. “I've seen too many people die down here, and heard too much pain upstairs. I can't stand it...I can't!” Martha stepped forward, pointing the scissors closer to Parker’s right eye.

“You don't want this.” Parker said gently.

“You don't know shit about me.” Martha said, an insane smile across her face. It pulled her features tight and small, and Parker wished she hadn't adjusted to the darkness. She didn't like the way Martha’s eyes glinted in the dim light and the creepy, static laugh coming from her lips.

“You think you can just break you out of here? I don't even know you!”

“You've been down here for a long time, haven't you?” Parker said, trying not to break eye contact. Martha flinched. “How long?”

“Months.” She said hesitantly. “A few weeks after everything started happening...I don't know how long.”

Parker felt herself nod. She understood now. The isolation, the abuse. It had driven Martha insane; literally.

“I can't imagine what you've been through...I can't.” Parker spoke calmly and her tone was strong. She felt power surge through her; like she knew she had to do, she had to keep Carl safe. Get him out of here as soon as possible, and the little voice in the back of her mind was telling her that had to happen even if Martha couldn't get out too. Carl is the priority. “But please, if you cooperate. If you can find it in yourself to trust me, then I swear, I swear we can get out of this together. All three of us.”

“Even if we did get out.” Martha seemed to start crying again as if on cue. “I won't survive out there. I don't know it like you do, like your group does. I know this basement, I know those men. I don't know this world, not anymore! You can't protect me from myself!” Martha’s voice travelled throughout the basement and it seemed to echo around them. A long pause followed as both women stared at the floorboards above them as they creaked and spluttered under someone's weight.

“Fucking bitches can't keep their damn mouths shut for a minute!” Parker faintly heard a thick, Southern accent above her head and she felt her body go still. Martha started to panic and dropped the scissors as her hands shook in terror. She crumpled to the floor as the footsteps moved across the room and approached the hatch leading into the basement.

“No, no, no.” Martha whispered to herself, clutching her knees to her chest and rocked back and forth on the floor, as if in a trance. Parker instinctively moved closer to Carl and shielded his body with her own just as the hatch opened across the room. She held her breath as a strong beam of light came into view, almost blinding her.

The deep thumping of footsteps trudging into the basement filled their ears and Parker finally got a glimpse of one of her kidnappers. He was tall and lanky, and she recognised the greasy blonde hair that hung down his bag like a wet rag. This was the man that kicked her, the one that knocked her out back at the mansion, and she glared as he casually walked down the steps and into the room. He was wearing a wife beater and a thick checked shirt, along with ripped up jeans and heavy combat boots; no wonder Parker’s nose was still aching.

“So, you two girls have a nice little chat?” He asked with a sickening smirk, and marched over to stand in between when Parker and Martha both sat. Neither of them responded, and the man scoffed. “Not so talkative now, are you?” His eyes wandered over to Parker, who was still sitting in front of Carl, and he raised a thick, blonde eyebrow. “I haven't had the chance to properly introduce myself.” He walked over and crouched down to her level. “I'm Scotty. Sorry about kicking you.”

“Apology not accepted.” Parker said firmly, making Martha turn to stare at her in shock. She had no idea where this sudden anger and confidence had come from, but she refused to let it go now. “Why did you take me and my son?”

“Your son?” Scotty grinned, glancing at Carl who slowly lifted his head. Obviously it was a lie, but she felt like it might be some sort of way to save him. Maybe they would at least acknowledge someone's child and let him go...maybe. But then again, this man didn't exactly look like the sympathetic type. “You're pretty young for a mom. How old are you anyway, 19?”

“25.” Another lie. Scotty let out a low whistle.

“Damn. You look good for 25.” He glanced at Carl. “So how old are you, kid?"

“Don't even think about talkking to him.” She replied through gritted teeth. Scotty tutted and shook his head at her, clearly unimpressed.

“Come on now.” He said quietly, leaning in close. “Don't piss me off. I've let you two live so far, haven't I? Don't make me change my mind already.” Parker felt a shiver run down her spine and Scotty chuckled before standing back up. He then turned round to face Martha, who was still cowering away in the corner. Rocking back and forth, at first she didn't seem to notice him approach her, but when he was crouching right in front of her, looking deep into her eyes, she seemed to notice him. “You been keeping our new guests company?” He asked.

“Y-yes.” She choked out. Scotty smiled and reached out to stroke her cheek, making Parker feel sick to her stomach.

“Good girl. You're such a good girl for me, aren't you?” His voice was low and sinister, and Martha tenses up at his words.

“Good...g-good.” This wasn't the same girl that had threatened Parker just now. It was like she was a whole other person. Whatever these men had done, it had really messed with her head. Scotty stood up once again and walked to the middle of the room.

“Now, I really want you girls to get along.” He said, pacing between them both. “Because Jeb and I, we have so many plans for the both of you. So many fun, exciting plans.” He winked at Parker and she fought the urge to vomit all over the floor. “But first...we have to test out the product before we buy it.” He focused his attention onto Parker completely and she stiffened. Scotty then aggressively grunted and reached down to grab her hair, yanking her up and onto her feet. She yelped as her scalp seemed like it was being ripped off, and stumbled to get steady on her tied up feet. Scotty laughed at her harshly and smirked. “Your words are tough, but your body ain't shit. So don't try and fight back, pretty girl.” He over looked at Martha. “Don't look so down, baby.” He said, dragging Parker to the hatch in the basement ceiling. “You can come play later. But I've got a shiny new toy I wanna try out first.”

Scotty shoved Parker forward before hoisting her up over his shoulder and stepping up to the staircase. Parker struggled and cried out against his grip, but with her ankles and wrists tied she couldn't fight back. She saw Carl sit up and stare in dismay as the only person he could trust was dragged away from him.

“Parker!” He sobbed as she looked into his deep blue eyes just before she disappeared out of sight. Scotty chuckled and kicked the hatch shut behind him, before carrying Parker across a dimly lit room and throwing her down onto an uncomfortable and dirty mattress. The bed springs groaned and shuddered, even under her light weight, and Scotty grinned down at her wickedly.

“Oh. I am gonna have fun with you, aren't I?”

***

Two hours earlier...  
“Gone?!” Lori shrieked as she rushed outside behind Rick. “What the hell do you mean they’re gone?”

“I mean they ain’t out here!” T-Dog panted, waving his arm around as Hershel, Beth and Carol gathered outside into the night air in front of the mansion. They all stared in disbelief at the wide open iron gate, and deep down they were thankful that no walkers had managed to get in. But the group were focusing more on the fact that both Parker and Carl were completely missing.

“Did anyone hear anything?” Carol asked, scanning the other’s faces for a hint of hope. But they all seemed to shake their heads. Lori put a hand over her mouth and Rick instantly tried to calm her down.

“Lori, listen to me, he couldn’t have gone far.” He said sternly, fear and anger clawing its way inside him at the same time. “We’ll find, him, okay?”

“You don’t know that!” She hissed at him, stepping away. “He’s been out here for over an hour, he could have gone anywhere!”

“What’s goin’ on?” Daryl called, stepping onto the porch with his crossbow in his hand. Maggie and Glenn were right behind him, both looking exhausted, as if they had just woken up. “What’s all the yellin’?”

“Carl and Parker are missin’.” Beth said with a timid voice, and everyone waited for the reaction they knew they were about to get.

“What?!” Glenn exclaimed, pushing past Maggie and Daryl and rushing out into the yard. “What are you talking about? How have they-”

“We don’t know.” Hershel said, doing his best to keep a calm tone. “Now, we all need to stay calm and think about this.”

“Are you kidding me?!” Glenn snapped at him and Maggie hurried to his side.

“Dad’s right!” She said, gripping her boyfriend's arm. “We can’t panic now, we have to try and find them.”

“Why’s that gate open?” Daryl demanded and everyone turned to look at him. He was glaring at the iron gate with fire in his eyes but no one seemed to know what to say in response.

“It was like that when I came out here.” T-Dog said. Daryl huffed.

“None of the cars are gone.” He said. “And Parker wouldn’t just leave on foot, neither would Carl.”

“What are you saying?” Carol asked.

“Someone else came in.” Daryl said grimly. He felt sick to his stomach but he didn't want to freak out like Glenn or Lori; even if he wanted to beat the shit out of something and scream his lungs out. How could she just be gone, who the hell would take her? His hands started to shake and he quickly crossed his arms to cover them as everyone took in this new information. Someone had broken in.

“Oh my god.” Lori breathed, clutching her chest.

“We-we have to go out there, right now!” Glenn said, turning to Rick and walking over to him. “We can’t wait any longer!”

“You don’t have a trail.” Daryl said, moving past him and up towards the gate. “You’ll be walkin’ round blindly if you go out now.” He then stopped and flashed a torch down at the ground, instantly seeing tracks in the dirt and crouching to get a closer look. “There was a scuffle right here. Someone was pinned down.”

“What else do you see?” Maggie asked curiously.

“Footprints. Two people, I bet.” Daryl then stood up and nodded at the track that the group had driven down to get here. “And tire tracks, they go right down there.” He pointed into the woods and a chill ran down everyone’s spines at the darkness leading away from the mansion. Beyond that gate was horror, and death, and none of them wanted to go back out there. But they knew eventually that they would.

“So we follow them?” T-Dog said and Daryl nodded.

“S’only thing we can do.” He shrugged.

“How the hell are you so calm?” Glenn shouted. “My sister is gone! Carl is gone!”

“I’m tryin’ to help you god damn idiot!” Daryl suddenly lashed out at him, getting in Glenn’s face. He had tried to stay calm, he really had, but this guy was just pissing him off now. “That’s more than I can say for you, since you’re just messin’ around with your lil’ girlfriend all day, not payin’ any attention to your own blood! The hell do you think I’ve been doin’ these past few months since we left the farm?! Everythin’ you ain’t been doin’!” Everyone cried out as Glenn reeled back and threw a punch at Daryl, knocking him flat on his back. Daryl growled but didn’t have time to get up as Glenn jumped on top of him and started throwing even more punches, knocking his jaw back and feeling blood started to run down his hand from where he clocked him on the nose.

“Stop it!” Maggie yelled, rushing to the two men just as Carol did the same, both of them trying to haul Glenn away.

“Hey!” Rick barked, grabbing Daryl’s collar and trying to yank him out from underneath Glenn’s grip. “That’s enough!” Daryl started clawing at Glenn’s face and managed to scratch a little too close to his eye, making him cry out. Daryl pushed him off, and out of Rick’s firm grasp, and grabbed his shirt to pull him upright.

“You see! Instead of helpin’ you’re just wastin’ time yellin’ at me!” Daryl grunted.

“You...fucking...asshole!” Glenn spluttered, spitting blood to the ground and pushing Daryl away from him. He keeled over and coughed, and Maggie quickly came over to pat his back and help him stand up straight.

Daryl was panting heavily now, and Carol rested a hand on his arm to try and soothe him, but he just roughly shrugged her off. “Now, if we’re done, I’m goin’ after ‘em.”

“You can’t just go alone!” Maggie said from where she was standing with Glenn, who coughed one last time before straightening his back.

“And I’m not staying here whilst my sister is out there.” He breathed.

“Daryl, Glenn and I will go.” Rick said firmly. “T-Dog, Hershel, and Maggie. You guys need to keep things right here.”

“Rick just stay here.” Glenn shook his head, but Rick clearly wasn’t going to back down.

“My son is out there.” He said. “I'm going out there with you. And I'm not leaving you two alone with each other if you're just gonna try to rip each other's throats out whenever our backs are turned! No more arguing, you understand?” He glanced over at Daryl too. “Both of you.” Daryl scoffed but reached down to pick up his crossbow, shrugging it over his shoulder.

“Fine.” He shook his head at the dull throb from his nose and spat out some blood. “Lets go. It's only gettin’ darker.”

Rick nodded at him and then turned to Lori. She was still sobbing into her hands and shaking, her pregnant belly even more on display as her shirt had moved up her body. Rick noticed this and gently moved it down to keep her warm and Lori looked up through red, wet eyes.

“I can't lose him again.” She whimpered and Rick nodded. He reached up and hesitantly stroked her hair; an action that had been foreign to them both for months now.

“You won't. We won't.” He said and pressed his forehead to hers. “I will bring him back, I swear to you. I won't stop until I do.”

“Please.” She begged him. “Please just bring him home. Bring Parker home.” She raised her head and looked at Daryl who just nodded.

“I plan too.” He promised, and grabbed the door handle of the Toyota. He yanked the door open and slid into the passenger seat, putting his crossbow in his lap and sat back against the seat, watching as Glenn and Rick said tearful goodbyes to their girls. Daryl huffed, looking down at his still shaking hands that were now bloody and sore. At least the pain in his hands were taking away the other pain he felt, the dull ache in his chest that kept prodding at him and making him wince.

Taking what might have been the only chance he'd get alone, Daryl let his hair fall over his face, and but back the urge to let tears fall. He wished that he could be better at this; letting himself feel. He wanted to be sad in front of the others like Glenn and Lori, but it's like his body rejected any sort of emotion whenever he was in public. He could get angry, no problem in that department, but the second he felt happy or sad it was like he was frozen. So even when his heart shattered and his stomach dropped the moment he heard Parker was gone, he kept calm. And that had just set Glenn off.

Daryl sniffed and wiped at his eyes as Rick and Glenn both walked over to the car, Rick sliding into the driver's seat whilst Glenn got into the back with all the weapons. Daryl sat up and cleared his throat whilst Rick started the engine. He sensed something was up and looked over at him, and Rick frowned.

“You ready?” He asked. Daryl was about to bite back a response, his tone harsh and gruff like usual, but for some reason he felt the sympathy behind Rick’s words. He nodded and glanced over at him.

“Yeah. Let’s go.” Rick hesitated but pulled out onto the road that led up to the house and drove through the darkened woods, putting the headlights on full beam and keeping a close eye on the tire tracks that Daryl had spotted. A few moments passed before Daryl suddenly heard sniffing from the backseat, and he looked in the rear view mirror to see Glenn wiping his eyes.

“Hey.” He grunted and Glenn sighed.

“What?” He spat out, trying to hide the wavering in his voice.

“We’re gonna find her.” He said gently and Glenn curiously locked eyes with him. “We will.”

Daryl watched as Glenn looked away and wiped at his eyes before shaking his head, as if trying to shake off the pain he was feeling.

Daryl sat back in his seat and kept his eyes on the road. We'll find her.

***

“Can't you at least untie me?” Parker asked with a scowl as Scotty sat across from her in a rickety old chair. It was a rocking chair, and it matched perfectly with the rustic aesthetic of the cabin they were in. He had just been watching her for who knows how long, and never taken his beady little eyes off of her. It only seemed to spur on her rage and she just stared right back, cocking her head to the side when he smiled.

“Now why would I do a dumbass thing like that?” He asked. She shrugged.

“It hurts. You don't want your guests to feel uncomfortable, do you?” She challenged and Scotty burst out laughing.

“Sweetheart, don't even bother.” He shook his head at her mockingly and she tried to keep herself calm. He was pissing her off with every second that he still sat there breathing. “I ain't gonna do that.”

“Pretty please?” Parker said in a mono tonal voice and he snorted.

“Quit it. Now sit still.” He said, and the sound of tires screeching to a halt came from outside. Scotty smiled and nodded at the door. “Good. Jed’s back.” He then carried on staring at Parker with a menacing look in his eyes, all while she glued her eyes to do the door. She heard shoes crunch on gravel and her heartbeat skyrocketed at the sight of a large, bulky, man shoving the door open and marching in. “You're just in time.” Scotty said just as the man, Jed, turned to look Parker up and down. She grimaced as his eyes widened at her tied up form on the bed.

“I miss anythin’?” He asked. Scotty shook his head and chuckled.

“We were waiting for you, weren’t we pretty girl?”

“Don’t fucking call me that.” Parker snarled, making both men turn their heads towards her. Scotty frowned and stood up from the chair, only to walk over, grab her chin, and yank her up closer to his face.

“Talk back to me again. Raise your voice at me again. I dare you.” He hissed, making her blood run cold. “Whatever you think I’m gonna do to you, I’ll make it ten times worse if you even think of back chatting.” Parker swallowed down her nerves, feeling her body shake under his grotesque touch. Scotty looked into her eyes for a while before throwing her backwards onto the bed so her arms were behind her back against the mattress, and reached down for his belt. “Now, you’re gonna be a good girl, and stay quiet for me.” He unbuckled his thick, leather belt and pulled it from his jean loops before proceeding to throw it across the room. He then unbuttoned his jeans and stepped closer to where her head was against the pillow. Parker held her breath as she realised how close his clothed crotch was to her face, and she started to feel sick at the reality of what was about to happen.

“Hey, don’t hog her!” Jed laughed, unzipping his own jeans. Scotty snorted.

“Don’t worry, you greedy fuck.” Scotty said, pulling his jeans down slightly to reveal his loose, red boxers. Parker turned away at the sight of a bulge but he was having none of it, and grabbed her hair, making her cry out. “You’ll get your turn.” He growled and grabbed the waistband of his boxers. “Come on pretty girl, say ah.” He teased, looking down at her with lust filled eyes. Parker felt tears start to run down her cheeks uncontrollably and she gagged as he thrust his hips forward. “Do it!” He shouted, making her jump. She gulped and watched reluctantly as Scotty yanked down his boxers, revealing himself completely to her, and took another step forward, pushing his erection closer to her lips. She wanted to scream, to fight, anything. But she couldn’t, she was tied up. So what the hell could she do?

“I think she’s shy.” Jed cooed from across the room and Parker nearly sobbed as she noticed him sitting in the rocking chair touching himself. God, she wanted to die. She had never thought of that happening before but in that moment if she just dropped dead onto the floor, she would have been happy. But then she remembered Carl in the basement, she remembered the others back at the mansion. She remembered Daryl and Glenn. And anger coursed through her veins. Her eyes flared up and she looked up through her lashes at Scotty’s determined face.

“I’m sorry I talked back.” She whispered in a gentle voice, making Scotty turn his head to the side. His hand was still gripping her hair but at her sweet tone she felt it loosen slightly. “I was just scared. That’s all. Please...don’t hurt me. I'll do whatever you want.”

“Get on with it man.” Jed exclaimed as Scotty stared down at the girl on the bed. He felt himself twitch in his hand and he smiled.

“See...now you’re getting it, sweetheart. There’s no way out of this for you.” Parker smiled up at him.

“You’re right. So let me make it up to you...I promise I’ll be good.” She then nudged her head forward as far as she could with his hand in her hair, and Scotty hissed.

“Good.” He breathed and Parker leaned forward as he released some of his grip on her hair, letting her wrap her lips around him. He choked out air as she began to move her head up and down him, swirling her tongue and humming in appreciation. “Damn, pretty girl…” He moaned out and Jed from across the room bit his lip in anticipation. Parker continued her work, listening to the sounds he was making and speeding up her movements. Her eyes flickered open and looked up, seeing that Scotty’s own eyes were tightly shut. She then felt her body surge forward and Scotty didn’t even have time to react before she bit down on his cock with all of her strength.

He screamed bloody murder as Parker snapped her head back and spat out blood and flesh and everything else she didn’t want to look at. She gagged and vomited across the floor as Scotty reeled back and stumbled onto the ground. He hollered as he grabbed his crotch and curled into a ball, the pain hitting him like a train. Jed had almost fallen out of his chair and was still partially exposed, just staring at Parker as she sat up in the bed. Her mouth was stained with blood, her cheeks littered with tiny red droplets and a fire in her eyes so bright that Jed felt his body freeze.

“YOU FUCKING BITCH!” Scotty screamed as he glared at her, still unable to move due to the pain. “I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU! I’LL KILL YOU FOR THIS!”

“Take your best shot asshole!” Parker spat out, blood dripping from her lips as Jed tried to buckle his jeans and lunge for her at the same time. But she was too fast and raised her legs up, leaning back against the bed, and kicked at him as soon as he got too close. She hit him square in the ribs, winding him instantly, and she watched as he tumbled to the floor with a loud thud. That’s when she saw it; the small knife that fell from his pocket. Her eyes widened and before the men could do anything, she pushed herself onto the floor and shimmied her body towards it. Scotty tried his best to sit up but the amount of blood he was losing was starting to make him dizzy.

“You...you fucking...slut!” He slurred out as his vision started to darken. “I’ll kill....your family...your son...for this! Just you...wait!” Parker ignored him and turned her body to the side in order to grab the knife with her hands that were still behind her back. The second she felt the cool metal of the handle she nearly cried out in relief. She hurriedly turned the knife in her fingers and pressed the blade against the rope, keeping her eye on both men that were rolling around the floor and moaning in pain. “Get the fuck up!” Scotty ordered as Jed clutched his ribs. “Get her!” Jed shook his head, trying to shake himself out of the daze Parker had put him in, and started to get to his feet. She started to rub the blade against the rope, feeling it loosen with every second, before finally hearing it cut in half and fall to the floor. As Jed finally got to his feet on shaking legs, Parker pulled herself back to the bed, using the mattress to balance herself onto her feet, and held the pocket knife up in defence.

“Take another step and I slit your throat!” She shouted as Jed went for her. He stopped, looking at the blood covering her, then looked down at Scotty.

“Okay, okay.” He said suddenly, his voice trembling. He slowly raised his hands in defense but Parker didn’t move or flinch. She wasn’t going to take any chances with this guy who was wanting to rape her only moments ago. She wasn’t going to let either of them out of here alive; they weren’t going to hurt anyone else, she’d make sure of that. “Look...I’ll just go, okay?”

“The hell you...will!” Scotty spat, kicking out at his friend only to wince in pain and sob. “You ain’t fucking...leaving me here to...die!”

“I’m not dying either, man!” Jed cried and stared Parker dead in the eyes. “Come on...I won’t ever come back, okay? You won’t see me again, I swear!”

“You really think I’m going to just let you back out there?” She spat at him. “You’re worst than any of those things out there, you’re far, far worse.” Jed’s eyes narrowed and a deep frown etched onto his face. Parker saw his move before he made it and dropped to the floor as he jumped forward, arms out wide to grab her, and she dropped to her knees. As she kicked herself away from, he stumbled onto the bed and it gave her enough time to quickly swipe the knife at the rope around her ankles, finally setting her free. She then looked up to see Jed looming over her.

“I ain’t dying today.” He growled and dropped his knees on either side of her hips before she could react, trapping her. But before he could reach for the knife she grabbed the back of his neck and brought him to her face.

“Rot in hell.” She snarled and stabbed the blade straight up and deep into his neck. Jed spluttered and coughed for a second before his eyes started to twitch and roll back into his head. His hands started wildly grabbing for her and Parker yelled out in frustration before yanking the knife sideways, slitting the man’s throat and sending a monumental amount of blood down onto her face and chest. She turned away as Jed gurgled and coughed out his last breath before slumping onto her. She laid there for a second trying to catch her breath, before hastily shoving him away from her and jumping to her feet. She felt Jed’s warm, thick blood run down her body and onto the floor and wiped at her eyes as some fell through her lashes. She glanced down at Scotty on the floor who had passed out from pain and blood loss. Parker stood there for at least a minute or so, just staring at his lifeless, disgusting body, before dropping to her knees and pulled his head back by his greasy hair.

“People like you, will always be worse than what’s out there.” She said slowly, her lip curling into a sneer. “Always.” And with that, she held the pocket knife firmly in her hand and sliced Scotty’s throat with one swift motion. She threw him back to the ground and stood up straight, then she quickly turned to the hatch in the floor and shoved the knife into her back pocket. Parker yanked the door open, allowing the dim light to seep into the basement and light her way. “Carl!” She called out, running down the steps and blindly looking around. She then saw a sight she never wanted to see.

“Stay back!” Martha cried out, the large scissors she had before now pressed against Carl’s pale neck. She was against the wall directly across from where Parker stood in the light of the doorway, and Carl was still tied up and crying, but this time he was wrapped in her arms and had his body pressed against hers. “I’ll kill him! I will!”

“Martha, they’re dead.” Parker said firmly, raising her hands in surrender.

“No, no men like that never die!” Martha said, shaking her head and letting tears fall from her eyes onto the cold floor.

“I’m not lying to you.” Parker said, taking a step forward. Martha flinched and pressed the tip of the scissors against Carl’s neck. Parker paused and shook her head. “Don’t!”

“You’re gonna kill me too, aren’t you?” Martha sobbed, her face distorted and ugly compared to her cold exterior from before.

“No. So please...let him go.” Parker hesitantly reached her hand out. “Just give me the boy, okay? Please.” Martha licked her lips.

“No. Let me leave.” Parker nodded.

“Okay. Okay, you can go.” Martha hesitated before slowly moving along the wall and around to the hatch. Parker followed her every movement with her eyes and moved closer to her as Martha neared the hatch. Carl was silently crying in her arms and Parker looked at him with a gentle expression.

“It’s okay, sweetie.” She said with a soft smile. “It’ll be okay.” Martha stopped once she was near the steps leading up to the house, and she nodded at Parker then threw Carl her way. Parker swiftly caught him in her arms and brought him close to her body, wrapping her arms around him and letting his face fall into her neck, allowing her shirt to muffle his sobs.

“Don’t follow me.” Martha said, taking a step up the stairs. Parker quickly cut Carl’s ties and lifted his tired body onto her hip, clutching him close to her chest.

“I won’t. Just go.” She said firmly, and that was all Martha needed before sprinting up the steps as fast as she could and out of the house. Parker waited a few seconds before breathing out a sigh of relief and clinging onto Carl with all her might. “Are you okay?” She whispered. “Did she hurt you?”

“N-no.” He said, leaning back to look at her. “What did those men do to you?” He asked. “You’re bleeding...everywhere!” Parker realised she must have looked terrifying and she shook her head.

“It’s not my blood.” She said quietly and Carl shut his mouth instantly before hugging her again.  
“I wanna go home.” He breathed out and Parker nodded, shoving the knife into her pocket again and climbing up the stairs.

“Come on, bud.” She patted his back and stepped into the light of the cabin once again. She stared down at the horrific scene before her, both Jed and Scotty’s bodies still bleeding profusely onto the floor, and she gulped. “Carl, don’t open your eyes until I say, you got that?” Carl nodded and buried his face into her shoulder. Parker stepped over the bodies and the blood, being careful not to slip over, and headed for the now open door. The cold night air swept over her body and she shivered, but stepped out into the dark woods and breathed in the feeling of freedom.

But instead of taking a moment to really breathe, maybe even cry, she moved towards the dirt covered road that she could just make out in the darkness, and hoped that she would be able to finally get Carl home where he belonged. Where she belonged.

The woods were eerily quiet, but Parker actually welcomed it as she wandered down the road. Sunlight was starting to seep through the trees that surrounded her and she caught a glimpse of the first moments of dawn breaking. Deep reds and pinks started to fill the sky and she rubbed Carl’s back as she felt him softly snoring into her shirt. At least he could sleep after all that, it would be good for him to get some rest after everything that had happened. Parker stared down the road as it seemed to go on forever, and she wondered how long the cabin actually was from the mansion. Hours, minutes maybe? She couldn’t remember at all, so she was just going on blind faith that she would stumble across those huge gates again. Then she noticed something bright in the distance. She blinked as two white lights seemed to come speeding towards her, and she stopped moving mid step. That seemed to jolt Carl awake and he whined before turning his head.

“What? What is it?” He mumbled but she didn’t reply. Carl turned in her arms to see the blinding lights coming towards them and he raised his hand to shield his delicate eyes that he gotten use to the pitch black basement. “Can you see who it is?” He asked.

“No.” Parker said and reached back for the pocket knife, only to stop once the lights seemed to come to a sudden stop a few feet away. Parker held her breath as they went out and she saw the outline of a small car. The engine didn’t cut off as three doors all opened at once, and another small light flickered on.

“Parker?” Her chest tightened at the familiar sound of her brother’s voice and she stepped forward.

“Glenn?” She choked out. She saw someone run forward and the light grew brighter, revealing it to be a torch, and the second she saw her brother’s face she nearly collapsed.

“Carl!” Parker turned to see Rick race towards her and scoop his son from her arms, holding him close and crying loudly into his son’s jacket. Carl gripped onto his Dad and smiled widely.

“Dad.” He cried and Rick held him closer. Glenn then rushed forward and enveloped Parker in a bear hug. She was so caught off guard that she didn’t wrap her arms around him at first, but eventually she let her forehead fall to his shoulder and she moved her arms around his waist.

“Oh my god, oh my god.” Glenn breathed out before taking a step back and inspecting her face with the torch. “Shit, you’re covered in blood, what happened?” He demanded.

“It isn’t mine” She said with a dark tone and he blinked but shut his mouth.

“Are you hurt?”

“No. We’re both fine.” She said. “How did you find us?” Glenn paused and then looked down, almost ashamed at something, before taking a step to the side to reveal the third person that had stepped out of the car. Daryl was staring at her wide worried eyes and Parker felt her heart beat just a little faster and harder in her chest.

“Daryl saw tire tracks on the road, and back at the mansion he figured out there’d been a scuffle.” Rick spoke up once he had calmed down. Carl clung to his Dad and looked between the three adults curiously. “He said people had broken in and we followed the tracks down this road.”

“It was taking so long, and we couldn’t find anything.” Glenn said, reaching down to rub his sister’s arm. “We didn’t think we’d find you in time.”

“You did.” Parker said with a small smile, and Glenn smiled back at her before pulling her into another hug and kissing the top of her head.

“We need to get back.” Daryl said suddenly, making the others turn to him. They all nodded in agreement and Rick took Carl to the car. Glenn was about to pull Parker along with him but she stopped him, glancing at Daryl.

“Can you give me a minute?” She asked and even though Glenn clearly didn’t want too, he nodded and let go of her hand, then opened the door to the car and got inside. Once all the doors were shut Daryl stepped forward.

“You okay?” He asked gruffly. Parker shrugged.

“I don’t know.” She said. His eyes glazed over her blood covered face and chest and she looked away.

“You kill ‘em?” He asked quietly. She didn’t say anything. “How many?”

“Does it matter?”

“Yeah.” He said. “It matters to you.” Parker let out a breath before standing tall, no wanting to look weak anymore. She was fed up of being timid and scared when it came to death. She had killed before this, and she would kill after this. That was her life now; she had to move on.

“Two. They deserved it, trust me.”

“Would have killed ‘em myself if I had the chance.” He grunted and Parker and snorted.

“Right.”

“I would have.” Daryl said, taking another step forward. He reached up and brushed some blood soaked hair from her eyes. “If it meant you and Carl got out alive, I’d have killed them. No matter how many.” Parker licked her lips, tasting blood in her mouth, and winced at the reason behind it. She had done something she would never forget, and it felt disgusting to know what she had done to survive. In that moment, she vowed never to tell anyone what really happened. She got lucky, found an escape route, and killed them both.

“Come on. We need to go.” Parker walked past him, their shoulder gently brushing, and was about to reach for the door handle when she felt a warm hand grab hers. She flinched before looking into Daryl’s eyes. They stayed like that for a moment, just looking at each other, before Daryl finally spoke.

“Parker, are you sure you’re okay?”

No.

“Yeah.” She said, and plastered a smile that Daryl saw through instantly. “I’m just glad to be alive.”


	17. Day Off

SIX MONTHS LATER…

The cars had stopped along a side road after a few hours of blindly driving away from the horde. It had still been following them, even after months of crossing the state in order to get away from it. It always managed to keep up with them somehow; at this point the group just had to accept it. Daryl was still sat on his bike, patiently waiting for the others to get out of their vehicles, before turning off the engine and hopping off. His first instinct was to see if Parker was okay, and he watched as she slowly got out of the large 4X4 her brother had been driving. 

She stayed with him the most these days, not that Glenn was complaining. For the first few months she had been all over Daryl, going as far as to ride on his bike with him, but recently she hadn’t spoken to him at all, keeping to her brother’s company and staying quiet. Even though Glenn was kind of glad she was around him more, he did feel sorry for Daryl. The two had slowly started to see eye to eye and were much more civil towards one another as the weeks dragged on and the winter seemed to last forever. But it was spring now, and Glenn and Daryl respected each other. And that made everything a lot easier. 

Parker was also a lot closer to Carl, and he was exactly the same. He barely spoke to his parents anymore, too annoyed or tired to bother listening to them argue about the baby or pointless crap they couldn’t seem to get over. Even after the end of the world they ignored their priorities; their son. Parker was like his mother, sister, best friend and babysitter all in one, and Carl couldn’t have asked for it any other way. He respected his father enough to listen to him, but still rarely engaged in conversation with him. But his mother? Carl hadn’t spoken a single word to her in days, and even Daryl wondered what was going through the kids mind the more he pretended she wasn’t there. He had never ignored his mother growing up, even if she wasn’t perfect. But then again, Lori wasn’t exactly mother of the year either at this point.

The group all gathered around the Cherokee as Glenn and Maggie pulled up the map they had been following since the beginning, since they left behind Hershel’s farm. Rick made Carl and Beth stand at either ends of the group on watch whilst the others started discussing their next move. 

“We got no place left to go.” T-Dog said with a sigh. 

“When this herd meets up with this one,” Maggie said as she pointed to different spots on the map where they had scribbled down each walker location. “We’ll be cut off. We’ll never make it South.”

“What do you say, it’s about a hundred and fifty ahead?” Daryl asked, looking around the group whilst leaning against the car bonnet. Parker was right next to him and the two shivered as their arms brushed against each other. It had been a long time since that had happened, and it weirdly felt good to be so close. 

“That was last week.” Glenn said with a shake of his head. “Could be twice that by now.”

“This river could have delayed them.” Hershel said, running a finger down the small, winding blue line on the map. “If we move fast, we might have a shot to tear right through there.”

“Yeah, but if this group joins with that one they could spill out this way.” T-Dog said with a sad look. 

“So we’re blocked.” Maggie said, defeated. 

“The only thing to do is double back up twenty-seven, swing round to twenty-four.” Rick suggested. 

“Yeah, but we picked through that already.” T-Dog pointed out. “It’s like we spent the winter going in circles.”

“Yeah, I know.” Rick nodded, looking at everyone this time. “At noon we’ll push West. Haven’t been through there yet. We can’t keep going house to house. Need to find some place to hold up for a few weeks.” Parker, who had been silent through this entire exchange, looked up at him and realised Rick was staring at his wife who was sat in the car. Parker sighed and pushed away from the Cherokee before grabbing her gun.

“Where you goin’?” Daryl asked as she started to make her way into the woods. The others turned to watch her and Rick stepped forward.

“No splitting up.” He said and Parker glanced over her shoulder.

“Might as well hunt for something whilst we’re stuck here.” She said, her tone harsh and bored. Parker then turned back to the woods and walked away, leaving everyone stunned silent.

“What’s up with her?” Carol asked Glenn quietly. “She’s been like that for a while now.”

“I don’t know. She won’t tell me.” He replied. He let out a breathe and started to follow his sister before Daryl placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I got it.” Daryl grunted and hoisted his crossbow onto his shoulder. Rick shook his head and looked at T-Dog.

“Keep up the perimeter and look outs. Maybe get some water from the creek we passed. We’ll be back soon.” T nodded and everyone went to work on patrolling the area and counting their supplies; a ritual they did every time they stopped. They would either need to stock up or at least keep note of everything they had. It made them all feel just a little bit safer. 

Parker trekked through the woods just like Daryl taught her; heel toe, knees bent, and don’t make a sound. Her assault rifle was resting in her hands like always and her knife was strapped to her hip, ready to be grabbed at any moment if she saw or heard something move in the bushes. During the winter, she had practised more and more with her gun, and some of the other guns that the group had collected, leading her to become one of the best shots in the group besides Rick and Daryl. And that surprised everyone. Parker used to be scared of guns when everything kicked off, not wanting to use one at all unless absolutely necessary, but now it was like another limb. Something she always felt the need to use. She stepped over some fallen branches before hearing twigs snap behind her. She whirled around, gun raised and was ready to squeeze the trigger before she saw who it was.

“Relax.” Daryl grunted, raising his hands in mock surrender. “I ain’t the threat.” Parker scoffed in annoyance and lowered the rifle.

“I could have blown your head off.” She snapped and Daryl snorted.

“You would have missed.” He said, and Rick suddenly appeared from behind him, looking at Parker with a questioning look. She narrowed her eyes.

“I don’t miss.” She spat and turned her back on them. Both men gave each other a look before following her. It was completely silent as all three of them tried to find something to eat. It had been a long time since they had seen a deer or even a rabbit running around the woods; an owl was the last thing Daryl had caught and it hadn’t exactly hit the spot. Parker trudged further until she came to a small clearing overlooking a river. There was a worn out and abandoned train track under her feet and she curiously followed it, the two men right behind her. Then she turned her head and looked across the river, and her heart stopped. There was a large, concrete building surrounded by long and tall barbed wire fences and gates. There were watch towers situated at all four corners and she could see that there was a small courtyard area in the centre with even smaller ones littered around the building, all guarded by fences. Parker stopped dead in her tracks and Daryl and Rick frowned before following her gaze. It was a prison, a huge prison, and it was completely protected. 

“That’s a shame.” Daryl said as he stood next to her, nodding at the cluster of walkers inside the perimeter of the fence. Rick stood quietly on Daryl’s other side, taking in the vast amount of space and the realisation that this is exactly what he had been praying for started to sink in. 

“We can take it.” Both men turned at the sound of Parker’s voice as she stared off at the prison with hopeful eyes. She looked at them and smiled. “We can.” Rick matched her smile and nudged Daryl, silently telling him to return to the group. Daryl nodded and then looked down at Parker.

“Come on. We should tell the others.” 

“Rick, you go on.” She called to him as he started making his way into the woods. He frowned but Parker gave him a determined look. “We’ll catch up.” Risk hesitantly looked between the two of them before shrugging.

“Don’t be too long.” He then disappeared. Daryl raised an eyebrow at her.

“You finally ready to talk to me?” He asked and she rolled her eyes.

“Don’t be an ass.” She said. Then she paused and looked at the ground, scuffing her boots and sighing. “I haven’t been the nicest person to deal with lately, I get that.” She said slowly and Daryl felt his heart speed up. “But...what happened at the mansion, what happened with those men.” She trailed off and Daryl looked down at her, wanting to see her eyes again.

“You don’t have to tell me anythin’.” He said but she instantly shook her head.

“I did things.” Parker finally met his gaze, and he froze. “I did things that I probably won’t ever forget. I won’t be able too.” She bit her lip. “I can’t tell you. I don’t want too...but just know that what I did, I did it for a reason. I did it to keep Carl alive, to bring him home. And I...I don’t know if that’s gonna change me or if I’m ever gonna be the person that I used to be. How can I be happy when I’m not the same?”

“You are the same.” He said. “You’ve just gone through tough shit. That doesn’t mean you have to change.” She blinked up at him and Daryl sighed before slowly walking backwards and towards the others. “Come on, otherwise Glenn will get the wrong idea. Again.” Parker couldn’t help but chuckle, and she then realised that had been the first time that had happened in weeks. And she smiled.

***

Rick was cutting one of the prison’s main fences open with a pair of bolt cutters, and Parker stood right behind him with her gun trained on the walkers on the other side. There was a small walkway cut off by another fence that the walkers were now all pushing against to get to the group, and she narrowed her eyes as some snapped their jaws and snarled at them all, wanting to tear into them and eat after what must have been months without any food. She glanced down to see Rick finally making a large enough gap for everyone to fit through, before he stood up and nodded for her to go through.

“Go, go!” He ushered her quickly through the fence before doing the same for the others. Once everyone was through, Daryl and Glenn quickly used some wire they had snagged from the boot of the 4X4 and tied the gap back up to keep it secure. They didn’t need anymore walkers getting in, there was already enough inside for them to try and deal with. 

The second the fence was sealed, a walker threw its decaying body towards Glenn, and he jumped back, landing into Parker. She patted his shoulder and then rushed to the front to stand beside Daryl as he led the group down the walkway towards the prison. They all jogged as quickly as they could, gaining more and more attention from the dead as they neared the first watchtower. It was still in good condition, and Rick walked up to the front gate that led into the prison yard, eyeing up a fallen truck in front of the gate and the other fence a few feet away. Walkers were wandering around the yard aimlessly, not seeing the group yet, and Rick took this opportunity to just stare at the prison in complete awe.

“It’s perfect.” He breathed. “If we can shut that gate, prevent more from filling the yard, we can pick off these walkers. We’ll take the field by the night.” Everyone nodded in agreement.

“But how do we shut the gate?” Hershel asked.

“I’ll do it.” Glenn offered. “You guys cover me.”

“No, suicide run.” Maggie said with a shake of her head. 

“Aside from Parker, I’m the fastest.” Glenn pointed out. 

“No. You, T-Dog, Maggie and Beth draw as many as you can over there.” Rick pointed up the walkway, an area that was away from the main gate and could easily make a path for someone to make a break for the prison yard. “Pop them through the fence. Daryl, go back to the other tower.” Daryl nodded without question and started walking back the way they came. Rick then turned to Parker. “Park, you’ve become a damn good shot, so you go with him. Carol, you do the same, be their backup and focus on your head shots, take out any walkers they might have missed near the fences. Use your rifle and take your time, we don’t have much ammo to waste.” The two women nodded and jogged after Daryl. 

“Stay on the right side, near the back.” Daryl instructed Carol as they jogged up the staircase to the tower. “Park, near me.” Carol took her position, keeping an eye on the rest of the group through her scope, whilst Daryl and Parker set their gun and crossbow up on the railing.

“You think this’ll work?” Daryl asked after a few seconds of waiting. Parker nodded.

“Yeah. It’ll work. Rick hasn’t let us down so far, has he?” Daryl snorted.

“Fair enough. Come on, get ready.” They all waited for Hershel and Carl to get up to their tower before Glenn, Maggie, T-Dog and Beth started hitting the fences and yelling, gaining the walkers attention. They all started stumbling towards them with open arms and Lori opened the gate for Rick to run through. Parker instantly shot a walker that lunged towards him and Daryl got one a few yards ahead. Carol aimed at some walkers that broke away from Beth’s yelling and fired a few rounds, finally getting one in the head.

“Take your time!” Parker called out as Carol tried a few more rounds. The older women took a breath and nodded before waiting a moment to fire one more time. She hit a female walker square in the head as it went for Rick and he turned to nod at her in thanks. She smiled at him and then at Parker, who just laughed in sheer bliss as she fired at more looming walkers. Daryl took out two more before he ran out of arrows and stood back as Rick yanked the main fence shut, then ran up to the final watchtower in the corner of the yard. 

“Light it up!” Daryl shouted to everyone and every member of the group started firing their guns. After barely a minute, all of the walkers in the yard were now on the ground, completely still. Parker lowered her gun and stared at their handy work before whooping in triumph. She noticed Daryl watching her and she felt herself go a little red. She hadn’t looked this excited in a long time and she almost forgot what relief felt like. What hope felt like. Daryl didn’t shake his head and turn away like he might have done a few months back, or completely ignored her like he used to at the very beginning. Instead he smiled at her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, leading her back down the staircase after Carol.

“You did good.” She said, wrapping an around his waist. He chuckled.

“Yeah, you too, short round.” He replied and she pinched his hip, forcing him to grumble. Parker smirked and walked out into sunshine and back to the others. Her brother grinned at her, then noticed Daryl’s arm. At first his smile seemed to fade, but then he saw the big smile on his sister’s face, and he realised he had forgotten what that had looked like. And Glenn smiled back at her. 

“Fantastic!” Carol breathed out.

“Nice shooting.” Parker said proudly and she grinned.

“Yeah, you too! You okay?” Carol asked Lori, who smiled and laughed in response.

“I haven’t felt this good in weeks.” She replied, patting her son’s head as he walked past. Parker was glad to see he didn’t move away this time. 

“We haven’t had this much space since we left the farm!” Carol cried out as the group gathered into the yard, Lori closing it behind them, and they all grinned in triumph. T-Dog pumped his fist into the air and whooped with joy. Parker felt her body surge forward out of Daryl’s protective grip and she ran out into the open space, throwing her arms up and laughing. Daryl stopped walking and just watched her, a little smile on his lips, before hearing someone come up behind him.

“She’s smiling again.” He turned to see Glenn stand next to him. He was grinning at his sister too, and at his girlfriend and her family as they all hugged each other a few meters away. “I almost forgot what that looked like.”

“Yeah. Me too.” Daryl said. Glenn licked his lips and turned to him.

“Look, I’ve been a jackass to you. I’m just...she’s the only family I have left, and I was worried about you with her.”

“You don’t have to explain yourself.” Daryl said with a shake of his head but Glenn pressed a hand to his chest to stop him from walking away.

“No. I do.” He said. “I don’t want to be the bad guy anymore. And if that means I have to suck it up and face the reality that my sister won’t always rely on just me, but you too, then I will.” He smiled before looking at Parker who was ruffling Carl’s hair as he laughed along with her, not quite believing what they had just done. “You’re good for her.” Daryl glanced at him with a frown, not expecting to hear that at all. “I didn’t want to believe it, but you are.”

“Glenn-” He tried to say, but the words seemed to fail him. 

“You wanted to go after her just as much as I did when she was taken. And I never thanked you for that. So, thank you for caring about her. But, word of advice?” Daryl looked at him curiously.

“What?” 

“Don’t piss her off. She hits harder than you think.” They both chuckled together before Glenn was called over by Maggie, leaving Daryl alone again. He put his crossbow back over his shoulder and went back to just watching Parker from a distance as she rejoiced with the others, before meeting his gaze and giving him the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. And for the first time in a long time, Daryl felt hope, and it felt pretty damn good. 

*** 

It was like seeing him for the first time all over again, she couldn’t keep her eyes off of him. And it had only taken killing a bunch of walkers and taking over a prison to do so. Parker stared at Daryl as he stood on top of the upturned truck at the front gate, keeping watch in case any walkers showed up on the other side of the fence. Nothing had happened so far, but he still stayed up there alone. He was good like that. The others were sitting around a makeshift campfire with all of their belongings, eating some squirrel that Daryl had finally found a few hours after bringing the cars up to the gate and the rest of them settling into the yard. It was peaceful, and they all started to feel the exhaustion kick in. Beside her, Glenn hummed in appreciation as he finished up his piece of meat. “Just like mom used to make.” He joked, throwing a bone away. 

“Except mom wouldn’t hunt it herself.” Parker smirked, making her brother snort. 

“She’d just get some half price stuff at the market and call it a day.” The others in the group laughed along with them, missing the times that the twins would talk about their family. That used to be all Parker and Glenn would talk about, but nowadays there either wasn’t anything to say, or no time to talk at all.

“Tomorrow we’ll pull the bodies together.” T-Dog said after a little while, lying back against his bag. “Keep them away from that water. Now if we can dig a canal under the fence we’ll have plenty of fresh water.” 

“If the soil is good, then we can plant some seeds. Grow some tomatoes, cucumbers, soybeans.” Hershel said, poking at the small amount of seeds in his hand that he had managed to scavenge at a food market a few weeks back. Parker nodded, the idea of fresh vegetables being almost too good to be true, then looked up to see Rick walking past the fence once again. He had been patrolling the perimeter for a long time, refusing to come and eat with the others until it was secure. Hershel seemed to notice her gazing at him and sighed. “That’s his third time around.” He said, and everyone looked over. “If there was any part of it compromised, he would have found it by now.” Everyone went quiet again, before Beth leaned over to Lori.  
“It’ll be a good place to have the baby.” Her voice was soft and reassuring, and Lori couldn’t help but smile at her. “Safe.” Beth said. Parker then stood up, grabbing a plate of leftover squirrel, and walked over to Daryl. His back was to her, but he soon heard her trying to climb up the side of the truck, he reached down to help her. He hoisted her up by her hand and she handed him a plate of meat. 

“It’s not much, but if I don’t bring you something you won’t eat at all.” Parker thrust the plate towards him and Daryl grunted before taking it and stuffing the food into his mouth, making her grin. 

“Your brother talked to me.” He said after a while and she looked surprised. 

“About what?”

“You. Us.” He said.

“Something bad?”

“Nah. Said he was sorry, said that I was good for you.” Parker blinked at him as he wolfed down the rest of his meal and chucked the plate to the side and putting his crossbow on his back. 

“Do you agree with him?” She asked, and Daryl paused. He wasn’t expecting that from her. 

“Do you?” He challenged, and she laughed.

“If I didn’t think you were good for me I wouldn’t have bothered chasing you in the first place.” She teased. 

“What if I don’t think you’re good for me?” He said, folding his arms. Parker scoffed, then saw his expression didn’t change, and she cocked her head to the side. Then she glanced over at the others, seeing that they were spying on the two of them. She smirked as the group almost immediately looked away in embarrassment, before turned back to Daryl who was still staring at her. Parker took a few steps forward so they were toe to toe, then pressed her lips to his cheek. Daryl instantly closed his eyes, but kept his arms stiff and against his chest. Parker rested her hands on his biceps and then pulled away. 

“I’m what you need.” She whispered, then stepped away from him, looking up at the sky, acting as if she hadn’t just kissed him for the first time in front of other people. Daryl then noticed her rolling her right shoulder and pressing her hand against, as if to relieve tension and he frowned.

“What’s wrong?”

“That rifle. Haven’t used it so much in a long time. My muscles just ache, that’s all.” She muttered, feeling it throb under her touch.

“Come here.” He said, and she stepped towards him. Daryl then licked his fingers clean of any meat and grease and then reached over to her, turning her so she was facing away from him, then began massaging her tired shoulder with his hands. She watched him out of the corner of her eye, surprised that he would do something so intimate with her. Sure they had kissed, but a massage was different. It was sensual, teasing her with his fingers without actually touching her sexually. It was strange, but she wasn’t going to start complaining, especially since he seemed to know what he was doing. But that just raised more questions than answered them. 

After a while of eye contact, Daryl’s fingers slowed down and he seemed to realise what he was doing, and he pulled away. “We’d better get back.” He said quietly. 

“That was pretty romantic.” Parker said with a small smirk, making Daryl’s face flush. “You sure you don’t wanna stay up here for a bit?” She pouted at him and to keep his composure calm, Daryl scoffed at her.

“Come on.” He said, trying to his smile and also the tightness in his trousers that he really didn’t want her to notice, before crouching near the end of the truck. “I’ll go down first.” 

“Even better.” Parker teased

“Stop.” He warned, and hopped down. He then reached up for her hand and she gladly took it before jumping to the ground with a thud. Parker straightened up and felt Daryl retract his hand, but she held onto it. He looked at their fingers and then sighed, shaking his head and gently pulling away. “Not yet.” He said and Parker instantly nodded, knowing he was still new to all of this. She didn’t want to push him away. 

“Take your time.” She said. “I’ll wait.” Daryl nodded once at her and the two headed back to the group.

“Bethy, sing Patty Riley for me.” Hershel was saying just as Parker and Daryl sat down side by side across from Glenn and Maggie. His youngest daughter looked at her Dad with worried eyes, and Parker saw the embarrassment on her face. Maybe she wasn’t used to singing in front of others? “I don’t think I’ve heard that since your mother was alive.”

“Daddy, not that one please.” Maggie asked softly. Hershel looked down sadly for a second, before smiling and raising his head once again.

“How about Parting Glass?” He suggested.

“No one wants to hear.” Beth said shyly. Glenn shuffled in his spot on the floor.

“Why not?” He asked. Parker reached over and nudged Beth’s shoulder.

“Come on. I’ll even sing with you.” That caught everyone’s attention. Only Daryl and Glenn had ever heard her sing from their little group of survivors, and Parker realised the others probably also didn’t realise she could sing in the first place, or that she used to be musical and play guitar nearly every night. 

“Okay.” Beth said after a moment of thought, feeling a little less shy once she heard Parker’s kind words. “Oh all the money that e'er I spent, I spent it in good company.” She softly started to sing. Everyone smiled and slowly started to relax as Beth’s beautiful voice rang out into the night sky and seemed to burn as bright as the fire at their feet. It felt good to be like this, so peaceful and relaxed for the first time in months. They were safe out here, even if there were still walkers behind the fence and inside the prisons walls, in that moment, they were all together and safe. And that’s all they wanted. “And all the harm that e'er I've done. Alas, it was to none but me. And all I’ve done, to want of wit. To memory now I can’t recall. So fill to me, the parting glass. Goodnight and joy be with you all.”

Beth paused suddenly, and looked to Parker with a shy glance. The older girl smiled and nodded before opening her mouth.

“Oh all the comrades, that e’er I’ve had. Are sorry for my going away.” Everyone stared at the two girls as they sang in perfect harmony, not expecting either of them to have voices as good as they did. While Beth’s was higher pitched and softer, Parker’s was a little rougher and almost hypnotic like a siren’s. Her voice was a lot more powerful than the song she was singing, but she kept her tone delicate to match Beth’s. The entire time they sang, Daryl couldn’t keep his eyes off of Parker, just staring at the way her eyes lit up and her lips curled as she sang out the words. “And all the sweethearts that e’er I had. Would wish me one more day to stay.” Parker noticed that Rick had returned from patrol and was offering some food to his wife, which she at first refused. But after some silent coaxing, Lori took the last pieces of meat and put them onto her plate with a small smile. Rick then leaned back on his ankles and watched the girls sing along with everyone else, and Parker wondered what he was thinking. Was he happy? Did he feel safe?

“Beautiful.” Hershel praised once Beth and Parker slowly finished the song, smiling at each other as they did so. Parker then felt something on the small of her back and fidgeted in the grass sightly.

“Don’t move.” Daryl said softly when the others weren’t paying attention. That’s when she realised it was his fingers dancing across the bottom of her spine, rubbing soft, gentle circles into the fabric of her worn out shirt. She felt butterflies erupt inside her stomach and she smiled before she could stop herself. Daryl didn’t look at her, and his face was as calm and collected as usual, but he was sat a little closer than before in order to touch her. No one could see, but Parker didn’t care. He was still wanting to be close to her, and that’s all she could want. 

“We’d all better turn in.” Rick announced after a while of peaceful silence. “I’ll take watch over there.” He nodded to the far side of the yard. “We’ve got a big day tomorrow.” 

“What do you mean?” Glenn asked the question that everyone was thinking simultaneously. 

“Look, I know we’re all exhausted.” Rick said quietly, looking at his hands. “This was a great win. But we’ve gotta push just a little bit more. Most of the walkers are dressed as guards or prisoners; looks like this place fell pretty early. Could mean that the supplies may be intact.”

“With the amount of food this place must have stored away, that could last us weeks.” Parker said.

“Months.” Carol added.

“They’ll have an infirmary, a commissary.” Rick continued.

“An armory?” Daryl asked. 

“Bet it's outside the prison somewhere, but not too far away.” Rick nodded. “The Warden’s office would have info on the location. Weapons, food medicine. This place could be a goldmine!”

“We’re dangerously low on ammo.” Hershel spoke up from across the fire. “We’d run out before we even make a dent.”

“Well, that’s why we have to go in there.” Rick said. Parker frowned and sat up a little.

“Hand to hand?” She asked. He nodded curtly.

“After all we’ve been through, we can handle it. I know it.” He then turned to Carl who was lying on his front beside his Dad. “These assholes don’t stand a chance.” He said, smiling. Carl briefly smiled back before looking down at the grass, pulling up little strands and chucking them into the fire. Before leaving, Rick looked at everyone in the group individually, receiving nods of agreement to his plan in return. He stood up and headed over to the opposite side of the yard where he was going to keep watch, only to be followed by Lori a few moments later. Parker sighed and sat on the grass before looking over at the truck near the front gate. She then slowly stood up, already missing the feeling of Daryl’s rough fingers on her skin, and grabbed her rifle and a bottle of water.

“Where you goin’?” Daryl asked, frowning a little. Parker smiled in return, not wanting him to worry.

“Taking watch on the truck. I need something to do.”

“You ain’t sleepin’?”

“Nah. Not yet.” She shrugged, then looked at the group. “Night guys.”

“Night.” They all chorused back. As she walked away Daryl jumped up and reached out for her arm, making her turn around to face him.

“You want company?” He asked. Parker grinned, showing off her perfect teeth, before kissing his cheek again, making him blush.

“Goodnight.” She whispered, then took her leave. 

“Yeah, I was definitely right.” Glenn spoke up, making Daryl glance at him with a frown.

“About what?” Glenn didn’t reply, just smirked at him before settling down to sleep beside Maggie, Hershel and Beth doing the same across from them. Daryl took one last look at Parker as she pulled herself up onto the truck and grunted before lying down on his sleeping bag, propping his head up against his back pack.

“You’re good for her.”

Daryl scoffed before turning over to face away from everyone else, not wanting them to see him ponder his thoughts about Parker Rhee and her weird brother. They were both going to be the death of him. But he didn’t particularly mind that; it was if it turned out to be the other way around that bothered him for the rest of the night.

***

Parker took one look at the mass of walkers inside the prison gate and grimaced before turning to her brother.

“I’d really rather not.” She muttered and Glenn nodded.

“I’d rather eat fried owl again.”

“Would you two quit whinin’?” Daryl asked in a bored tone, just wanting to let some of his aggression out on some dead guys. He had been tossing and turning all night, and it was Parker’s fault because she wouldn’t get out of his mind. Yeah, it was definitely her fault. “We’re already losin’ daylight because you two couldn’t wake up.”

“Well excuse me for trying to keep our camp safe.” Parker said with a roll of her eyes, making Daryl huff in annoyance. “Besides, I woke up before Glenn so grunt at him for a change.”

“Like two minutes earlier than me!” Glenn protested before yelping as Maggie lightly slapped both of them over the back of the head.

“Shut up, both of you!” She said, but her tone was teasing and they both knew she meant no real harm by it. 

“You ready?” Hershel asked their leader, ignoring the so called ‘adults’ of the group. Rick nodded and he gripped the gate with both hands, holding some clasps that he had used to lock the gate the day before in his hands. After a brief pause he yanked the chain link gate open and the others all ran inside, keeping a tight formation. Once they were all through, Hershel shut and locked the gate again, the rest of the group watching as walkers started trudging towards them. T-Dog and Maggie were right behind Parker and Glenn and dispersed as two walkers came at them from both sides. Both Glenn and Parker headed to the front and took down another three whilst Daryl uppercut a male walker with his hunting knife.

Rick led the way, with the others in a semicircle facing the small courtyard and keeping an eye out for anymore of the undead that might appear. Parker and Maggie wildly scanned the area but couldn’t see any, and nodded at Daryl who let Rick know that for now they were in the clear.

“Hey, come on! Over here!” The shouts and banging of metal starting coming from the fence as the other members of the group started luring walkers over towards them and away from the cluster of others trying to get inside. The closer they got to the main prison building, the more walkers that seemed to appear. Maggie lunged out as a walker reached out for her and Parker kicked another to the ground before slicing it’s head with her hammer. Daryl pulled her out of the way of another dressed in prison overalls and sliced its head in two before it could grab at her.

“Thanks.” She breathed out, hitting another walked on her opposite side.

“Don’t mention it.” He called as he stabbed another walked between the eyes. It seemed like they weren’t going to stop appearing, and the group did their best to not only stay together, but keep a steady pace up towards the front entrance to the building. T-Dog suddenly broke a little further away from the group than he should, and Rick instantly called him out.

“Don’t break rank!” He shouted.

“I gotta get it!” Parker whipped her head around to see T-Dog rush towards a dead body wearing riot gear, and realised T was aiming for the large, plastic shield on the corpse's chest. She quickly kicked a walker back that reached out for him and smashed its head against the nearby brick wall, giving T-Dog enough time to grab the shield. Suddenly, another walker appeared and T-Dog slammed into it with his new shield.

“Maggie!” Rick shouted and Maggie instantly rushed over and stabbed it in the head whilst it was still on the ground.

“You good, P?” T-Dog asked, dragging Parker back to the group along with Maggie and getting back to their original positions.

“Fine and dandy!” She called back, hitting a walker in the head just as Maggie sliced its cheek. 

“We’re almost there!” Rick told them as they all slowly crept closer to the main doors, no more walkers in their sights. There was a small door leading into the prison and Rick opened it, checking the inside, before seeing nothing and moving on. Everyone thought that was it, that the rest of the walkers must have been inside, but that all changed the second they rounded the corner and saw nearly a hundred walkers circling around another small courtyard. 

“Oh shit!” Parker breathed and everyone planted their backs against the wall and the side door, not wanting to be seen. Rick held his hand up to signal them to stay put, and looked round to see if there was a way past them or a way to shut the gate without getting bitten. Then he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Two large, riot gear wearing walkers slowly came out from behind a dumpster and headed straight for them. Rick then looked further around the corner and saw two more riot gear walkers that had already spotted them. Daryl had already raised his crossbow and was creeping past the others towards them, but the second he fired an arrow it bounced off one of the walkers helmets, and he cursed under his breath. 

Rick and T-Dog then lunged towards the riot gear walkers, attempting to take them out, whilst Maggie, Glenn, Parker and Daryl were cut off by a large, gas mask wearing zombie that tumbled out of the side door they were leaning against. It was huge, much larger than any walker they had seen before, and looked as if it had been locked in some sort of gas chamber; skin peeling off and burnt around the mask. It smelt awful, and Parker tried to hold back a gag as she, along with the other three, backed up away from it. 

Maggie yelled before harshly smashing her machete against the gas mask in an attempt to break it, but had to push it away as the walker just kept on coming. 

“Daryl!” Rick hollered as he tackled a walker to the ground, realising that more of the walkers inside the side courtyard were starting to file out towards the group. Daryl sprinted over, smashing a walkers skull with the but of his crossbow, before rushing to Rick’s side. Rick jumped up and kicked a walker in the chest that was getting too close to the gate, shoving it back to the ground, just as Daryl slammed the gate shut and locked it with more of the clasps they had used earlier. 

The walkers with helmets and masks on wouldn’t seem to back down no matter how hard the group hit them, and it was getting tougher to keep pushing them away. Parker then thought of something and snatched Daryl’s hunting knife from his belt as she ran past him. 

“Parker, don’t!” Glenn cried out, but she had already kicked the walker hard to the ground and jabbed the knife up into its chin, missing the gas mask and hitting it square in the brain. It collapsed completely dead at her feet and she laughed in surprise before turning to see all of the others staring at her in shock.

“Did you see that!” She exclaimed gleefully, and they all glanced at each other before taking their hand held weapons and heading straight for the other three riot gear walkers on the far side; copying Parker’s movements and stabbing them through the chin. Once all of the walkers on their side of the fence had been taken down, the group starting heading back towards the main fence, only for Rick to suddenly hold his hand up.

“Stop.” He said, glancing around the yard.

“But it looks secure.” Glenn said through harsh pants of breath.

“Not from the look of that courtyard over there.” Daryl pointed to the side fence and they all grimaced at the herd of walkers smashing themselves against the chain link fence. He then pointed at a woman on the ground dressed in regular clothes, a walker he had taken down a few moments ago. “And that’s a civilian.”

“So the interior could be overrun with walkers from outside the prison?” T-Dog asked tiredly.

“Well if there’s walls down what are we gonna do?” Glenn asked. “We can’t rebuild this whole place.”

“We can’t risk a blind spot.” Rick said with a shake of his head. “We have to push in.”

“You're sure that’s a good idea?” Parker asked uncertainly. “Just us?”

“As long as we stick together and keep quiet, we can do this.” Rick reassured her. “I know we can.” Parker hesitated but looked at Daryl, who seemed pretty calm about the idea. He shrugged at her.

“You got anythin’ better to do?” He asked. She sighed and nodded at Rick.

“Alright. Let’s go.” Rick led the way inside, opening a metal gated door that showed a walkway up into the side of the prison. It was rusted to hell and squeaked as it was opened, but the others all clambered behind him to get inside. T-Dog quickly shut the door once they were all through and jogged up the stairs behind Glenn. There was a sliding door that when opened revealed the long, dark corridor inside the prison, and Parker felt a cold gust of wind wash over her. She shivered and Maggie nudged her elbow.

“Like Rick said. Keep quiet and in formation.” She whispered. Parker nodded at her but kept her hammer closer to her chest. She handed Daryl back his knife just as they shut the main door, leaving them all in total darkness. Then a small light could be seen up ahead and the group headed straight for it, leading them out into a large, messy room, covered in paper and bits of rubbish, with metal tables and chairs and stairs leading up to a balcony that overlooked the whole room. A little further away was a metal barred door that was closing off the main prison cell blocks. The others held their weapons close as they inspected the room, making sure there were no walkers before Rick looked up at the balcony. There was a small office at the top where he could see a dead body sitting and facing them. 

Rick then pointed his machete towards a door on the other side of the room, nodding at Daryl and Parker to check it out. Whilst Glenn and T-Dog kept watch on the main door, Maggie tried another caged door to the left of the staircase leading to the balcony, but shrugged at Rick when it wouldn’t open. They needed the keys. He slowly started stepping up the metal stairs, gun and torch raised at the broken down door at the top. Parker watched from her spot next to Daryl who had his crossbow aimed at the door leading into a cell block. It was large, and seemed to hold about 20 cells inside. It was practically being handed to them, all of this space. Maybe it was too good to be true. After a few seconds of silence, the others finally heard Rick enter the small guards office and the rattling of keys made them all sigh in relief.

The main cell block had clearly been abandoned, with papers and rubbish scattered across the dirty floor. Every cell door was open on the bottom floor, and the group individually checked inside each bunk. Nothing but small toilets and beds, exactly what you would find inside a prison cell. As Daryl headed to the upper level to inspect the higher cells, Maggie and Parker peeked into one of the cells, only to be met with the stench of death, and instantly saw a man on the ground with his brain splattered onto the wall behind him. Parker shuddered and Maggie just walked away, not wanting to look at the man’s body any longer than she had too. Parker then glanced up to see Daryl carefully making his way up to the walkway, and she jogged after him, hammer raised and her free hand resting on her gun that was holstered at her hip. Daryl nodded to her, making sure everything was okay downstairs, and she nodded back. Then something made a noise a few cells away and they both spun around. Daryl raised his crossbow and Parker crept behind him as he walked up to a cell a few feet from where they had been standing, only to jump back slightly as a walker threw itself against the bars. 

Daryl moved past it in disgust, leaving Parker to stab it through the head and watch it fall to the floor in a heap. She scoffed at it and carried on moving. More noises could be heard from the next cell over and Daryl reeled back as another walker lunged at him. This time, he grabbed his own knife and stabbed it, before turning to look down the walkway for any others. Once they had all confirmed there were no more walkers, Glenn and Maggie went outside to get the others and their belongings. Parker, Daryl and Rick then got to work at clearing out the dead bodies, dragging them from their bunks and pushing them over the railings of the top floor so T-Dog could drag them out of the way of the others. 

“What do you think?” Rick asked them all as everyone followed Glenn inside, taking in their new home. Everyone seemed rather shocked at the state of it, but then again, the idea of a bed to sleep in at night seemed to push the darker thoughts out of their minds.

“Home sweet home.” Glenn sarcastically said, earning a disapproving nudge to the shoulder by his sister. 

“It’s perfect for the time being.” Rick pointed out and the rest of the group seemed to agree with him.

“It’s secure?” Lori asked, looking around the cells. 

“This cell block is.” Parker said, leaning against the banister of the stairs. Daryl was a few steps above her, holding his crossbow over his shoulder. 

“What about the rest of the prison?” Hershel asked.

“In the morning, we’ll find the cafeteria and the infirmary.” Beth then looked startled and turned to Parker with wide eyes.

“We...sleep in the cells?” She asked timidly. Parker looked at how dirty the bunk looked, but just shrugged.

“They’ve got beds.” She said nonchalantly. “And besides, it’s the safest place we’ve had in weeks.”

“I found some keys on a guard.” Rick said reassuringly. “Daryl has a set too.”

“I ain’t sleepin’ in no cage.” Daryl said suddenly, and Parker looked over her shoulder to see him walk back up to a small section on the walkway where the stairs linked together. He threw down his belongings and Parker looked away. In her mind, she was going to offer for him to share a cell with her, but she realised how stupid that would be. They hadn’t been that close in months, she had only really just started to talk to him again. Why would he share a cell with her now? Parker watched the rest of the group disperse and find their own place to sleep that night, smiling as her brother and Maggie settled down into one near the door together. She was happy that they were happy; they needed this peace. All of them did. 

“You coming?” Parker turned to see Carol on the stairs next to her, smiling brightly. Parker nodded and followed her and Lori upstairs to the other cells. The two older women decided to bunk together, and Parker realised everyone else was sleeping downstairs, so she bit her lip and walked away from where Lori and Carol were going and wandered to the far end of the cells. Carol frowned at first and walked after her. “You’re sleeping alone?” She asked quietly as Parker picked a cell not too far away from the perch that Daryl had claimed as his own. Parker inspected it, seeing that it was probably one of the cleanest she had seen, and nodded.

“It might be better that way.” She said Carol shook her head.

“At least sleep closer to us? We’ll be better protected.” Parker smiled and sat on the lower bunk.

“I appreciate it, I really do. But I think I’d like some time to myself. Besides, Daryl isn’t too far away. He can keep an eye on all of us.” Carol smiled a little and folded her arms.

“You two getting closer again, huh?” Parker felt her face heat up and she looked at her feet.

“I’ve been distant recently, I’m just trying to make up for that.”

“He knows that.” Carol reassured her, taking a look over her shoulder as Daryl dragged some mattresses over to the perch to sleep on. “He respects you, cares about you. That’s a good thing.”

“It might be.” Parker said quietly, meeting Carol’s gaze. 

“What do you mean?”

“When you care about people in this world, it’s basically a death sentence. For both of you.” Parker said, running a hand through her dirty hair. “You have to keep them safe, you have to do whatever it takes to keep them alive. I don’t want to lose any of you. And having someone like Daryl care about me...I don’t know.”

“Someone like Daryl?” Carol asked curiously. Parker stood up and leaned against the doorway to her cell, watching Daryl settle down onto the mattresses and yawn. She smiled.

“He’s a lot better than he thinks he is. He cares about all of us. He’d do anything for us. That’s what worries me.” Carol sighed quietly, understanding what Parker was saying. Then she reached over and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Parker glanced over at her.

“You’re exactly the same. You’d do anything to protect this group, you said so yourself.” Parker nodded slowly, taking in her words. Carol then pulled her into a gentle hug, stroking Parker’s hair and letting her breath out. “He’ll be okay. Daryl can take care of himself, he won’t put himself in danger. But you just need to do the same.” 

“Carol-” Parker pulled away but Carol softly shushed her. 

“Get some rest. You’ve earned it.” She smiled at her. Carol started to make her way back to her cell block but Parker walked out behind her.

“Carol!” She called, getting her attention. Carol turned and smiled at her. “Thanks.”

“You don’t need to thank me.” She said. “You just need to do as I say.” Parker laughed a little and allowed her to go back to her and Lori’s cell. Parker watched as everyone else slowly started to settle down for the evening, having their first early night in months, and felt a wave of exhaustion hit her. She wobbled on her feet slightly and braced herself against the wall, holding her head and yawning.

“You good?” She jumped at the hushed tone of Daryl’s voice and she looked up to see him walking over to her. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. Just tired.” She said, waving it off. Daryl raised an eyebrow and grabbed her arm, steering her into the cell. “I can walk Daryl.” She said with a roll of her eyes but he ignored her, and moved her to the bunk.

“Lie down.” He instructed, and she did as she was told, feeling her eyes growing heavy the second her head touched the pillow. “Just sleep, okay?” He said, and got up to leave, but was stopped once he felt Parker grab his hand.

“Would it be bad if I asked you to stay?” She said quietly. Daryl froze and she licked her lips before starting again. “Not in the same bed, I won’t ask that much of you. But just...stay with me until I’m asleep?”

“Why?” He asked. It wasn’t a rude question, he was just curious. Parker looked a little embarrassed but swallowed her fear and looked him in the eyes.

“I have trouble sleeping sometimes.” she said. “It’s...comforting, when someone else is here. Making sure I’m not just tossing and turning all night.” There was a long silence before Parker dropped her hand and curled up on the bunk. Daryl then let out some air through his nose and sat himself down against her bunk, leaning back near her feet. “What are you doing?” 

“Stayin'.” He said, looking forward and staring at the wall. He brought his knees to his chest and rested his elbows on them, wanting to get comfortable, and Parker smiled at him.

“Okay.” She then pulled the blanket over her body and sighed, settling into the weirdly comfortable, yet very thin, mattress and felt every bit of fear and anxiety melt away. After a few minutes of silence, Daryl looked over at her to see her breathing heavily and her eyes glued shut. She was out like a light already, then it dawned on him. She didn’t have trouble sleeping at all, he would have picked up on that by now. She just wanted him to be near her. He looked away and shook his head, getting ready to stand up and leave, then heard her moan in her sleep. He turned, only to see her shuffling about to get comfy, before settling down, and sighed. 

He then sat back down on the floor, this time close to her stomach, and rested his head on the small space of mattress she wasn’t lying on. He cleared his throat a little before staring at her face, noticing a piece of hair that had fallen across her nose. He gently ran his calloused fingers over her cheek and brushed the strands back behind her left ear, seeing the now completely healed bullet wound that left her ear partially dented inwards. He suddenly smiled, remembering their time on the farm when he would visit her every night, watching her sleep and making sire she was okay. It seemed like it had gone full circle and he was taking care of her all over again. Daryl couldn’t help but caress her cheek with his thumb and trace the small cluster of freckles across it. She was so pretty,s he had always been pretty, but right now she looked practically ethereal. 

“You are good for me.” He whispered, knowing she wouldn’t respond. “And I’m gonna be good for you, too. One day.” He then slowly felt his eyes start to shut, and he allowed his exhaustion to take control. Only moments later, when he felt Parker shuffle closer to him and enveloped his hand in hers, did Daryl finally fall asleep, but this time it was with a smile on his face. 


	18. Roommates

He was alone when he woke up, and the bed was no longer warm. His arm snaked across the bedsheets as his tired eyes slowly blinked open, and when he was met with nothing but an empty mattress, he sat up and frowned. He hadn’t felt her move; either he dreamt her being there or he had been so exhausted he didn’t feel her move away from him. Either way, he didn’t like the lonely feeling of being in the cell without her. Daryl slowly rubbed his face to try and wake himself up, only to look at the frosted glass windows to discover it was still barely light out. It was probably early morning, maybe even just before dawn. So why was Parker gone?

He stepped out of the cell door and scanned the walkway, hearing nothing but soft snores from Carol and Lori’s cell a few doors down. Daryl leaned over the railing and saw Rick passed out on the floor near all of their gear, exhaustion clearly taking it’s toll on him too. Everyone else seemed peaceful and still sleeping, and that only made Daryl more concerned. That meant no one else had heard her go either.

He took his crossbow and made sure his knife was secure to his hip before tip toeing down the opposite staircase towards a cell door they hadn’t opened yet, or at least they hadn’t the night before, but now it was slightly ajar. The hallway behind it led off into the darkness, and after standing there listening for any noises for a few moments, Daryl assumed she hadn’t gone that way. Then he heard something like running water in the distance, and his ears perked up.  
He quietly opened the cell door then shut it behind him, not wanting to wake the others or alert them of his absence. The last thing he needed was them all barging after him when Parker might want to be on her own. He paused mid way through the hallway. Was she going to get angry at him for following her? Would she scream, cry, hit him? He didn’t know. But she had wandered off alone, and that hadn’t been a good thing the past few months of her not talking to him. So he assumed the worst.

He passed at least three walker bodies lying in the long, never ending corridor, and the fresh smell of death wafted up towards him, making him grimace. She had definitely been through here, and recently. He followed the sound of running water, realising it sounded exactly like a shower, to suddenly see a cloud of steam billowing out of an open doorway.

It was the prison shower room, or at least this cell block’s shower room, and the heat Daryl felt was almost too much to bare, especially since it was the middle of summer in Georgia now. He silently walked inside, trying to see through the steam, before seeing a figure at the far end of the room. He could make out the outline of a woman standing a few rows of sinks and wash basins down, and all he could do was stare as she held her face in her hands and cry as the hot water of the shower poured down on her, soaking her pale skin and jet black hair. In the short while it took for him to walk over to her, he ignored the fact that she was naked and not covering herself at the sight of him, or that blood and dirt were starting to wash off of her body and onto the tiled floor, making it look like a mess. Instead, Daryl put the crossbow down near one of the sinks and tentatively stepped towards Parker, who still hadn’t looked up at him yet.

“Park?” He said softly, and she glanced through her fingers, only to sniffle and wipe at her nose.

“You should go back to sleep.” She said, her voice cracked and hoarse from the crying. “You shouldn’t be up yet.”

“Neither should you.” He said gruffly. “What are you doin’?” Parker laughed humorlessly at him, and finally decided to cover her breasts, hiding further into the shower so the steam would cover everything else. He saw her shiver, and knew she was scared. Scared of him seeing her like this, naked and alone. Crying. She hated him seeing her cry. It made her feel weak. And even though he would never admit it, Daryl thought she was still beautiful even when she cried.

“What does it look like I’m doing?” She said sarcastically, nibbling at her lip and sniffing harshly. “I’m sobbing like a baby and using up all the hot water.” Daryl snorted.

“Yeah. Guess you are.”

“Why’d you follow me, Daryl?” Parker asked suddenly, standing up a little straighter and tilting her chin up towards him. Her hair was stuck across her face, droplets of water falling down her chin and onto her collarbones.

“Didn’t know where you were.” He shrugged, taking a step closer to her. He felt the tiny splatters of water hit his face and it felt oddly satisfying, but he ignored it the best he could. “Wanted to make sure you were alright.”

“I’m not.” Parker replied. “I’ll be honest with you, I’m not alright.” She looked at her feet as if she was embarrassed to admit that. “I haven’t been for a long time.”

“I know.” He didn’t know what else to say to her, not in this state. He was afraid he’d say something stupid and end up making things worse for himself, or her. Parker nodded through the water and then slowly turned her back to him. At first he thought she was going to just carry on showering and ignore his presence, but instead after a few seconds of silence, she shut the water off, letting the silence ring out across the shower room. The steam still clung to the air and covered most of their vision, but Daryl could still make out how tense and stiff her shoulders were. He felt the urge to leave her to be alone once again, but just as he stepped back, she moved.

“They had this cabin.” Her voice was soft, barely there even in the silence. And Daryl strained desperately to hear her properly. “Those men that took Carl and I. That’s where they lived. In the middle of the woods where no one would find them.” Parker sniffed and let out a shaky breath of hot air. “They threw us in the basement at first, just left us there to wonder what they were gonna do. I thought they would go back and hurt everyone else at the mansion but…” She trailed off and quickly pressed a hand over her eyes to conceal the tears that were starting to fall. Daryl stepped forward and reached a hand out, then retracted it. He wasn’t good at comforting, especially when someone was on the verge of breaking down. So he allowed Parker her time and her space to tell him what had happened to her. However, with the way she was acting, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know anymore.

“Go on.” He urged after a little while. Parker removed her hand and braced herself against the wall, no longer caring that she was completely exposed and the steam was starting to disappear.

“There was a girl already down there. They beat her...and raped her. She was just...gone, not herself. She said they’d do the same to me, and to Carl. A kid.” Parker growled in disgust, clutching her stomach. “Then they dragged me back upstairs...threw me on a bed.” Daryl held his breath and prayed that what he was about to hear wasn’t what he was about to hear. “One of them watched whilst the other forced me onto my knees...undid his belt…” Parker let out a sob and that was it.

“Did they…” Daryl couldn’t even finish the sentence. He was so angry, so disgusted. He wanted to go all the way back to the mansion and find that cabin, and kill those men himself.

“No. I killed them before they could.” Daryl let out a sigh of relief and Parker turned around to face him properly. “If I hadn’t...and if I couldn’t get Carl out in time he’d-” She paused and looked down, letting her hair fall across her face. She then licked her lips and shook her head. “I did what I had to do to save Carl’s life.” Parker said, looking up at him with tired eyes. “I don’t regret it. I just...I can’t get it out of my head. I had to tell somebody...I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.” Daryl whispered, running a hand over her wet hair. “Don’t ever be.” He then did something neither of them expected. He bent his head down, letting some hair fall in front of his eyes, and slowly inched his lips towards Parker’s pouting mouth. Without hesitation she pushed herself onto her tiptoes to meet him, and melted into his kiss, his embrace, like it was the most natural thing in the world. He moved his lips against hers and even though he wanted to move closer to her, hold her in his arms, he didn’t. He was still learning, still trying to figure out how to act around her when they were like this. Parker then paused and pushed him away, covering herself up again and going red.

“I-I should put something on.” She ended up whispering, and Daryl automatically glanced down, then backed up.

“Uh, yeah. Sorry I’ll...yeah.” He cleared his throat, the realisation that he had just seen a woman naked in real life for the first time only just hitting him. He turned around, giving her privacy, and Parker smirked at him.

“Could you hand me that towel over there?” She asked and Daryl glanced up to see a white towel hanging from a hook opposite him. He nodded and reached up, then threw it over his shoulder so she could take it from him without him turning around. Parker scoffed at him teasingly and wrapped it around her body, making sure it wouldn’t fall away, before folding her arms. “Okay. You can look.” Daryl was hesitant at first, but slowly inched his way to how he was before and nodded at her.

“You goin’ back?” He asked, pointing over his shoulder at the door. Parker sighed, upset that he wasn’t going to continue to kiss her, but nodded. She walked over to grab her clothes from where they were thrown onto the floor and headed out the door without looking back, making Daryl frown. Had he done something? He shook his head, clearly not understanding, and grabbed his crossbow before following her.

The cell block was still completely silent, and the sunlight was still barely coming through the window, and Parker made sure to tip toe back to her cell so she wouldn’t wake the others. Daryl quietly closed the door leading to the showers and followed her up, placing his crossbow on the makeshift bed he had made the night before, and turned to watch Parker. She hurried into her cell and into the shadows, wanting to change into some semi-fresher clothes from her backpack before facing everyone else. She knew Rick wanted them to go deeper into the prison, getting rid of any walkers that might be lurking where they can’t see, so she wanted to looked at least a little presentable. She rubbed the towel against her damp skin and quickly threw on some underwear and her bra.

When she was fully dressed in some cleaner jeans and a long shirt, she stepped out of her cell, ruffling her hair and throwing a baseball cap over the top to keep it in place, before looking up to see Daryl staring at her. She then frowned and raised an eyebrow.

“Were you watching me change?” She asked and his face instantly contorted in disgust.

“The hell? No!” He growled, stepping back and grabbing his stuff for the day with more force than necessary.

“Daryl.” Parker deadpanned, getting his attention. “I’m joking. Relax.” She smirked as he grumbled to himself and marched down the stairs, not wanting her to see his face flush. “Idiot.” She chuckled to herself, before turning at the sound of movement down the walkway. She smiled as both Carol and Lori slowly emerged from their cells, looking fresher and happier than they had in weeks after sleeping on an actual bed.

“Morning.” Lori said with a big smile, hobbling over towards Parker whilst holding her ever growing baby bump. Parker nodded at the two of them and then helped Lori get down the stairs, noticing everyone else was slowly starting to wake up as well. Rick was leaning with his back against the wall and rubbing his eyes, trying to wake himself up after what looked like the first proper nights rest he’d had in months. He had stayed up most nights to keep watch, refusing to lie down and only letting someone else take over when he physically couldn’t stay awake. It was making him look older, and sleep deprivation would only slow him down. Once Lori was down the steps Parker walked over to him, offering her hand to help him up.

“I’m fine.” Rick said with his gravely, morning voice.

“Come on. You’re tired.” She said and he looked at her hand, then back at her face, before sighing and giving in. She hoisted him up to his feet and he nodded gratefully at her, before grabbing his gun and heading out of the cell block and into the recreational room of the prison where the main door and guard office was.

“Where’s he going?” Carl’s voice made Parker jump and she turned to see him at her side, staring off into the direction his father had gone. Parker shrugged her shoulders and ruffled his exposed hair, his Dad’s hat tucked under his arm.

“I don’t know, kid.” She said. “I’m sure he’ll be alright. Come on, you still got any of those protein bars left?” Carl’s eyes lit up at the sudden realisation of a small breakfast, and he dragged Parker over to his cell. He ripped open his tiny bag and yanked out the remaining strawberry flavoured protein bar he had snagged from a corner shop a few days prior. He snapped the small piece in half and handed Parker some before nibbling on it himself. Parker perched herself on the edge of his bed and happily munched on the bar, even though it was small it helped her feel less sick.

“How did you sleep?” Parker asked a few silent minutes. Carl shrugged.

“Pretty good. It’s strange, though.” He said.

“What is?”

“Sleeping in a bed. I’m not used to it.” Parker froze and looked at Carl as he finished off his piece of protein bar, and her heart broke. This kid was slowly forgetting what should be completely normal to him. Sleeping in a bed. Not fearing for his life. She hated it, having him in this world when he should have had a regular childhood like she and Glenn got to have. Instead, Carl knew how to fire a gun before he was 14 years old. That’s not how a child should live.

“Yeah. Me neither.” She said quietly. There was a pause before the sound of dragging filled the cell block. Parker and Carl jumped to their feet and looked out of the cell to see Rick dragging two walker bodies by their ankles into the block, dumping them onto the ground and wiping at his brow.

“What are those for?” T-Dog asked, leaning against his cell door and rubbing at his eyes.  
“Body armor.” Rick said, pointing at the heavy duty riot gear covering the walkers. Parker grimaced. But then she noticed their weapons, and her heart sped up. The walkers had been carrying Ak-47’s and even some smoke grenades, as well as torches attached to their belts.  
“Glenn, help me get their gear off.” Parker said, glancing to her right as her brother stepped out of his and Maggie’s cell. He nodded with a yawn and got to stripping the walkers of their riot armour, taking the weapons and placing them on a small table in the recreation room. The men all followed behind Parker and Glenn, Carl and Maggie not too far behind, before they all carefully examined each weapon to see if they were usable and loaded.

“Not bad.” Daryl said, nodding at one of the machine guns.

“Flash bangs. CS Triple Chasers.” Rick said, holding up what looked like a slimmed down version of a grenade. “Not sure how they’d work on walkers, but we’ll take them.” Parker grabbed one of the guns and smiled at the feeling of it in her hands. How she used to fear guns she did not know; she was just glad she had gotten over it so quickly. Daryl grabbed a helmet that Glenn had managed to pry from a walkers head and he grunted in disgust as some sort of slime dripped out of the top. Parker gagged as he threw the helmet on the table.

“I ain’t wearin’ that shit.” He said defiantly.

“We could boil ‘em.” T-Dog said, holding up an equally slime covered glove.

“Ain’t enough firewood in the whole forest. No.” Daryl scoffed. “Besides, we got this far without ‘em, right?” He then picked up a bat and starting swinging it, seeing how good his aim was.  
Parker rolled her eyes at him and starting taking the machine gun apart, checking to see if it was safe to use. She counted more than enough bullets for the trip and set it down on the table, sitting down in a chair and leaning against the metal for support. Her brother was fiddling with Hershel’s watch just as Carol appeared in the cell block door.

“Hershel?” She called softly, getting everyone’s attention.She then nodded her head towards the block, hinting for the older man to follow her, when Rick spoke up.

“Everything alright?” Rick asked, worry evident in his voice.

“Yeah.” Carol smiled, although Parker could tell she was hiding something. “Nothing to worry about.” She then waited for Hershel to follow her before returning to the block, leaving the others in silence. Parker noticed Risk’s expression and bit her lip before standing up and walking to his side. He was trying to busy himself with the flash bangs, but she knew him well enough by now to know when something was up.

“Hey.” She said quietly, turning her back on the others and focusing only on him. He side eyed her and carried on what he was doing. “Risk.” She said, putting a hand on his, halting his movements. “She’s okay. She’s tired, hungry. But she’s okay, and so is the baby.”

“How would you know?” Rick asked harshly. Parker breathed in, trying to keep her cool, before retracting her hand.

“Because I actually talk to her.” She sat and moved away, grabbing the machine gun and flicking the safety off. Everyone went quiet in the recreation room as Parker’s voice travelled further than she wanted it too, and Rick looked stunned to say the least. He saw everyone’s eyes on him and he knew they were all thinking the same thing. She’s right you know.

“Come on.” Parker said. “Let’s get this stuff on and get moving.” T-Dog nodded and offered to wear one of the bullet proof vests, getting Rick to strap him in. There were two more left, and Parker insisted that Glenn wear one, much to his disapproval.

“If you’re going, you’re wearing it.” He said but she was already shaking her head.

“Don’t fight me on this. You know you’re gonna lose.” She said, yanking the straps over his shoulder before he could protest further. Glenn huffed but allowed his sister to fasten the vest before grabbing his gun and a can of red spray paint he had found in the recreation room. Parker stared at it in confusion and Glenn pocketed it before speaking.

“It’s to mark out way back.” He explained. “You know, in case we get lost.”

“Or cut off from one another. It’s a good idea.” Rick praised and Glenn smiled triumphantly before sticking his tongue out at his sister.

“Jesus christ.” She muttered, stepping away from him and turning to look at Carl, who was trying to balance an oversized helmet on his head. She giggled and pulled the top of it up so he could see, and they smiled at each other.

“You won’t need that.” Rick said, taking the helmet away from his son. “I need you to stay put.”  
“You’re kidding!” Carl said angrily. Parker backed off slightly, not wanting to be in the middle of that conversation, and turned to the three Greene’s. Beth was the only one not going with them into the prison, wanting to stay behind and take care of Lori with Carol. Hershel on the other hand had insisted on helping; only problem was Parker really didn’t like that idea.

“Hey, Hershel?” She said, shoving her hands into her pockets. Maggie was strapping her father into the last remaining vest, making sure it was secure before handing her father a gun. The farmer looked up at Parker and smiled kindly at her. “You don’t have to come, you know that right?” She said gently, not wanting to hurt his feelings. He was a strong man, stronger than most out there, but she also knew that he was the most vulnerable out of them all.

“I’m well aware of that.” Hershel said, smiling at his two daughters and ruffling Beth’s hair. “But I need to start pulling my weight around here. I need to help.”

“You are helping.” Parker said with a smile. “Every day. We already have more than enough of us going as it is.”  
“Then why don’t you stay behind?” Hershel asked. He wasn’t being rude, but he also had a point. There were too many people going, and with Carl as the only one to protect the others, it was almost dangerous letting the strongest members of their group go.

“Well, someone has to make sure Glenn doesn’t trip over his own feet.” Parker said, glancing at her twin brother as he stupidly fumbled with one of the helmets, only to discover it was sticky inside. He gagged and pushed it away from him, earning a chuckle from both Parker and Hershel. Hershel then looked at her and shrugged.

“You’re right. But I’m still going with you.” Parker felt defeated. The old man was more stubborn than her and Glenn combined; she knew she wouldn’t win.

“Let’s go.” Rick said loudly to the group, handing Carl the keys to the cell block and grabbing his Python. Daryl led the group out into the recreation room, and Parker stayed at the back of the line to close the door leading into the block. Carl locked it tightly shut behind her, and just before heading off after the others, she turned to face him, Beth and Carol who all watched them go.

“Stay safe.” She said gently, reaching through the bars to squeeze Beth’s shoulder, which had been tense the entire time. Beth smiled and patted it gratefully. Parker then looked at Carl. “You too, kid. You’re in charge now.” She winked at him and he smiled back before going into his cell. Parker finally looked up at Lori who was on the upper floor. “I’ll see you soon.” Parker said.

“See you.” Lori said in return, holding her stomach protectively.

“Park, come on.” She turned to see her brother ushering her to the door. Parker hurried over to him, gun in hand, and closed the door to the recreation room behind her, following her brother blindly in the darkness as they tried to catch up with the others that had gone on ahead. Eventually, the Rhee twins saw Daryl’s torch light and returned to the group. Glenn stayed at the back with Maggie and Hershel, drawing arrows on the wall behind them whenever they turned a corner to mark their route, whilst Parker rushed to the front beside Rick and Daryl, staying close to T-Dog who was only a few paces behind her. Both men had their weapons raised, ready to take on whatever was in the tombs of the prison, and Parker raised her gun slightly higher, as if it were a safety blanket.

As they walked quietly down the twisting and turning corridors, bodies scattered the floor and the stench of decay and rotting flesh burnt their nostrils. Parker stepped over a body with a caved in head, it’s eye popped out of it’s socket and staring at her, and bit her lip to stop herself from gagging out loud. Even though she had been exposed to this for a year at that point, the gore still seemed to get to her.

Cell doors were wide open with bodies hanging out of them, and Daryl, Rick and Parker all individually checked them to make sure no bodies were still moving. Thankfully, the hallway was silent. They turned right, shining their torches down the corridor, and starting making their way towards more doors leading to god knows where. It was like a maze, and Parker was internally grateful her brother had picked up that stupid spray can after all. After a few minutes of blindly turning corners, the group came to a T-Junction in the hallway, and Rick didn’t know whether to go left or right. Parker stepped out in front of them and Daryl was right behind her, shining his torch down the left exit. Rick then nodded in that direction and they all followed him, keeping a tight formation. Then Parker heard the moans and froze. It was just as Rick rounded another corner that he came face to face with what looked like a herd of walkers, and they all turned to stare at him with their dead, white eyes, snarling and snapping their teeth at him. He cursed under his breath and started pushing everyone back the way they had just come.

“Go back, go back!” He hissed and the group stumbled backwards to turn around. Maggie and Glenn took off down the corridor and Parker tried to follow them, but was yanked back by Daryl as a walker hurled itself out of a doorway she hadn’t seen. She shrieked in terror and stumbled back as it swung for her, but just as Daryl was about to fire an arrow, she grabbed her machine gun and spun it around so the butt of the gun was away from her, and she jabbed it at the walkers head, sending it to the ground with a thud. She then smashed the gun into it’s skull as hard as she could to confirm the kill before allowing Daryl to pull her away by her arm and down the corridor after her brother.

Daryl and Rick sprinted down the corridors with the others close behind them, before Parker heard Maggie yelling in fright. She turned around only to see another group of walkers coming up behind her and cutting her and the others off from Glenn and Maggie.

“Glenn!” She shouted, but got no response other than the walkers realising her presence and trudging towards her. T-Dog pulled on her hand and Parker reluctantly followed him, knowing that Glenn was smart enough to at least try and hide from the walkers before fighting them. T-Dog and Parker ran after the other three men who had hurled themselves into a nearby cell, and quickly shut the door behind them, ducking down so the walkers wouldn’t see them.

“Where’s Glenn and Maggie?” Rick asked in a concerned tone.

“They got cut off back there.” Parker breathed out, her voice shaking in fright.

“We have to back.” Hershel said and Parker nodded instantly.

“But which way?” Daryl asked. Parker tried to retrace her steps and nodded at him, remembering where she last saw her brother, and that was all the confirmation Rick needed to open the cell door and quietly step out. They narrowly avoided the walkers that were following them, and started to make their way back the way they had all ran, with Parker up front and Rick shining the torch for her to see.

“Down here, I’m sure it was after we passed one of these doors.” She whispered.

“Maybe they hid.” T suggested. Hershel then looked down a corridor and called out softly to Maggie, only to get no response.

“Come on.” Rick said and they all started following him again. However, Parker could have sworn she suddenly heard the far off voice of her brother and paused just as they turned left. Hershel seemed to hear it too, and quickly turned back around.

“Mag?” He whispered, stepping over a body that was leaning up against the wall. Parker was about to walk after him when she suddenly saw the walker rear it’s head up and snarl, grabbing onto Hershel’s right leg and causing him to stumble to the ground.

“Hershel!” She yelled and ran to him, shooting the walker in the head just as it bit down into Hershel’s shin. His crying and hollering caught the attention of the others and Parker quickly rushed to Hershel’s side as he cried out in pain.

“Daddy!” Parker looked up to see Maggie running towards them, tears in her eyes, with Glenn not far behind. Risk, Daryl and T-Dog ran towards them, and both Rick and Glenn hoisted Hershel’s arms over their shoulders to steady him. Maggie was sobbing at this point and Parker rushed to her to try and calm her down, but yelped in fright as walkers stumbled out from the darkness.

“Daryl!” Parker cried and he instantly shot an arrow towards one that lunged at her. Parker and Maggie quickly led Rick and Glenn down a corridor they hadn’t investigated, seeing light coming from the end of it, and the group soon found themselves on the other side of a set of double doors. Parker kicked them open with full force, ushering the others inside, before slamming it shut just as the walkers trudged down the hallway.

Daryl and T-Dog ran to her side as the walkers threw themselves at the doors, causing them to creak and shudder under their weight. Parker pushed as hard as she could to keep it shut just as Rick and Glenn laid Hershel down on the floor. Maggie held her father's head as Daryl quickly turned to Parker.

“Have you got it?” He asked, nodding at the door.

“Go, help them!” Parker cried and Daryl did as he was told, throwing his crossbow to the ground and kneeling beside Hershel as Rick quickly pulled up Hershel’s trouser leg, revealing the deep, blood soaked wound.

“Hold him down.” Rick suddenly instructed as he started to undo his belt. Maggie, Glenn and Daryl watched as he wrapped the belt around Hershel’s shin, just above the bite, before holding Hershel down as much as they could without hurting him even more. Parker then watched in horror as Rick tightened the belt then grabbed his hatchet from the ground, raising it above his head. “There’s only one way to keep you alive.” He said to Hershel who was still crying and panting. Maggie cried out as Rick slammed the axe down into her father's leg, causing him to scream in pure pain, making a giant cut in his shin. Parker realised the walkers were no longer banging against the door, so she quickly grabbed a metal bar from the floor and shoved it between the door handles, allowing her and T-Dog the chance to rush over and help as Hershel started to pass out from the pain. Rick kept hacking away at his leg and Parker covered her mouth and looked away, not wanting to see the carnage, before her eyes suddenly widened at the sight only a few feet away.

They had stumbled into a small cafeteria of some sorts, with tables and upturned chairs scattered across the floor, but what shocked her was the large metal fencing that ran along the far wall, and what was behind it made her blood run cold. Five figures were stood staring at the group in shock and Parker slowly reached for her gun that was hanging across her body. Rick threw the axe down the moment he had finished, looking over at Hershel who was now out cold.

“He’s bleeding out.” Rick said, trying to use Hershel’s pant leg to stop the blood. Parker nudged Daryl with her foot not taking her eyes off of the figures staring at her.

“Daryl.” She said and he looked up, only to notice them too.

“Duck.” Daryl said calmly to Rick, who frowned at first then quickly got on his knees as Daryl grabbed his crossbow and jumped to his feet, aiming his weapon and his torch at the strangers. The harsh light of the torch washed over the figures to reveal their faces and clothing to the group. They were male prisoners, all five of them, and they were all staring in total shock at the scene they had just witnessed.

Parker then raised her gun at them, stepping towards them with Daryl, and watched as one of the members, a lanky man with a red handle bar moustache and long, greasy hair, stepped forward and grabbed hold of the fencing that cut them off from the others.

“Holy shit.” He breathed out. Daryl ignored his comment and inched closer to the men, crossbow armed and ready.

“Who the hell are you?” He demanded.

“Who the hell are you?” A Hispanic man said back at him.

“We don’t have time for this!” Parker muttered, glancing over her shoulder at Rick who was trying to cover up Hershel’s bleeding leg.

“We have to get him back.” Rick said. “Maggie, come round here, and put pressure on the knee. Parker!” She whipped her head around. “I need you, now!” She threw her gun back over her shoulder and dropped to Risk’s side, knowing that Daryl could handle those men alone.  
“Help her press down, hard!” She did as she was told and pressed Hershel’s knee as much as she could, looking at the old man’s passed out face and letting a tear fall.

“Come on outta there.” Daryl said, nodding at the men. “Slow and steady.” They all slowly started making their way out from behind their protection, staring at the bloodbath in front of them.

“What happened to him?” The Hispanic man asked, panic evident on his face.

“He got bit.” Daryl said.

“Bit?” The men panicked, and the Hispanic pulled a pistol out from underneath his trousers, where he had tied the top of the jumpsuit around his waist. T-Dog jumped into action and pulled his own handgun out whilst Daryl shook his head at the group.

“Woah, woah! Easy now. Nobody needs to get hurt.” Daryl said calmly and Parker watched him whilst helping a sobbing, shaking Maggie on the floor.

“I need you to hold this.” Rick said, giving Maggie some towels that Glenn had grabbed from a table.

“Okay.” She stammered and Parker nodded at him.

“As hard as you can.”

“We got it.” Parker said and pressed with Maggie. Rick then licked his lips and looked up at Glenn who ran off behind the prisoners into their hiding space.

“You got medical supplies?” He asked as the men him watched in shock.

“Where do you think you’re going?!” The tallest of the group said, but Glenn was already gone and moving things around before they could stop him. The doors suddenly started banging again, the walkers seemingly hearing all the commotion.

“Who the hell are you people anyway?” The Hispanic asked, gun still raised at T-Dog and Daryl.

“Don’t look like no rescue team!” The red head cried.

“If you’re waiting on a rescue team,” Parker spat out, earning their attention on her. “Then you’re shit out of luck!” Parker heard a loud crash of metal coming from behind the fenced area and suddenly her brother appeared once again with a metal table on wheels, probably used to serve food to the prisoners on. He rushed back out and wheeled the table over to Hershel’s body.

“Come on, we gotta go!” Rick called out to his group, hoisting one of Hershel’s arms over his shoulder and lifting him. Parker made sure Maggie was stable with his knee before rushing to his other side and helping Rick lift the older man onto the table. Maggie let go of his leg momentarily, exposing the bloody stump that was left, and the prisoners all reeled back on horror.

“Oh holy jesus!” The redhead exclaimed, turning away at the sight of a tendon hanging from Hershel’s knee onto the table.

“T!” Rick shouted at T-Dog, who moved away from the prisoners and towards the doors. Rick and Glenn grabbed either side of the table and started pushing it towards the double doors with Maggie at her father's side and Parker leading them with Risk’s torch. Once T-Dog opened the door, a heavily armed walker threw itself his way, but he managed to get the upper hand and pin it against the door and stab at it’s chin. Parker then ushered the others through, holding the torch up so she could see, and just like that, the group was gone. Parker looked back to see Daryl wasn’t with them and she called out his name.

“Daryl, come on!” She hollered down the hallway, seeing his shadowy figure emerge through the door only a moment later. With that, she and T-Dog then led the group down the corridor until they spotted Glenn’s arrows leading them back. “This way, hurry up!” Parker instructed and Rick and Glenn pushed Hershel’s table as fast as they could without hurting him even further.

“That way!” Rick said, turning a hard left, but once they saw no arrow he instantly retreated. “No back, back!” A walker appeared out of nowhere in front of Parker’s face and before she had a chance to hit it with the torch, Daryl shot an arrow over her shoulder and through it’s head. She turned and nodded at him in thanks, and he just grunted and pulled her along with him so they were both leading.

There was commotion coming from behind them and the group suddenly stopped and looked back, only to see the shadows of the prisoners on the wall behind them.

“They’re following us.” Parker said uneasily and Maggie stared at her with wide eyes.

“The hell do we do?” She whispered.

“Keep going, we have to get him back.” Rick said and they continued on, even with the prisoners voices getting closer and closer to them.

Eventually, they found the cell door leading into the recreation room, and the second Daryl unlocked it, Parker sprinted through and hollered at the others in the cell block.

“Carl! Open the door!” She shouted, seeing him run towards the door.

“Parker?!” He cried out, seeing them all covered in blood. His face morphed into something resembling total fear when he saw Hershel on the table.

“He’s losing too much blood!” Maggie cried.

“Open the door!” Rick called out as Daryl locked the door behind them all.

“Carl!” Parker cried out, reaching the cell block door and waiting for Carl to open it. The moment he did, she swung it wide open and called out for the others to come through.

“In there!” Rick said, pointing to an empty cell, and they pushed the table through the door.

“Daddy!” Beth sobbed, clinging onto Carol for dear life at the sight of her father.

“Get him on the bed.” Rick said and Glenn and Maggie pulled the table to a stop before hoisting Hershel off of it and onto the mattress below. The shoved the table out of the way and Parker stepped back as they started working on bandaging the wound with the little supplies they had. She ran her hands over her face and then grimaced at the wet, hot feeling of fresh blood. She gagged and starting wiping it away with her sleeve, only to suddenly catch a glimpse of Daryl staring out of the cell block doors with his crossbow. She frowned then rushed to his side, that’s when she heard it.

“They followed us here.” She whispered, not wanting to alert the others. He nodded.

“Yeah. You got my back?” Parker stared at him in shock, not expecting him to ask her for back up. But when he looked down at her with pleading eyes she nodded.

“Always. Go.” She raised her gun and the two of them headed out into the recreation room, weapons raised, before waiting by one of the tables and aiming at the main door that the group had left open. There was a silence before the two of them heard the clanging of footsteps, and Parker tried to relax her shoulders, not wanting to lock up, before she saw the Hispanic man slowly inch out of the darkness towards them. The rest of his group hesitantly followed, staring at the two in shock at the sight of their weapons on them.

“That’s far enough.” Parker said, stopping them from coming in any further. The group halted and stared at the cell block door leading to Parker and Daryl’s group.

“Cell Block C.” The Hispanic said with a weird smile. “Cell four, that’s mine. Let me in.”

“Today’s your lucky day fellas.” Daryl said calmly and slowly. “You’ve been pardoned by the state of Georgia, you’re free to go.”

“What you got going on in there?” The Hispanic asked, his eyes trained on Parker. She narrowed her eyes.

“Ain’t none of your concern.” Daryl warned, not liking the look this guy was giving his girl. He paused. His girl? Where had that come from?

“Don’t be telling me what’s my concern.” The man growled, getting his gun out again. Daryl stepped away from where he was leaning on the table and straightened his back. Parker sneered at the group and did the same, inching her way closer.

“Chill man.” The tallest in their group said to the ringleader. “Dude’s leg is missing. Besides we’re free now! Why are we still in here?”

“He’s got a point.” Parker said, getting the Hispanic's attention. “Why are you still here?”

“I’ve gotta check on my old lady.” Another member said.

“Group of civilians breaking into a prison you’ve got no business being in?” The leader shook his head. “Got me thinking we got no place to go.”

“Why don’t you go find out?” Daryl growled.

“Maybe we’ll just be goin’ then.” The red head said, trying to coax the Hispanic away from Daryl and Parker, but he was having none of it.

“We ain’t leavin’.” He said harshly.

“You ain’t coming in either.” T-Dog suddenly came out from underneath the stairs leading to the guard tower, gun raised and a stern expression on his face. The Hispanic instantly raised his gun at him and Parker made sure she was trained directly at his forehead, not wanting to miss the shot if she was given the opportunity. She already hated this guy.

“It’s my house, my rules and I go where I damn well please!”

“Not anymore, asshole.” Parker warned stepping forward. The Hispanic looked her up and down and scoffed.

“The hell you gonna do about it, niñita?” Daryl frowned.

“Hell does that mean?” He spat.

“It means little girl.” Parker said, glaring at the man who just smirked back at her. “I can speak Spanish too, gilipollas.” The Hispanic suddenly scowled at her insult.

“No me hagas matarte, perra!” He exclaimed, raising his gun at her, but Parker didn’t back down.

“Stop using that shit and speak English, asshole!” Daryl spat, but the Hispanic ignored him.

“¿Tienes miedo, pequeña? Usted debería ser.” The man smirked and Parker’s eyes widened ever so slightly before she growled and practically surged towards him.

“Parker, don’t!” Rick’s voice rang out through the room and she paused with the gun just a few feet from the man’s head. His eyes were blazing with anger, daring her to go on. “Everyone relax, there’s no need for this!”

“How many of you in there?” The Hispanic demanded.

“Too many for you to handle.” Rick said firmly.

“You guys rob a bank or something? Why don’t you take him to a hospital?” Everyone went quiet. Parker glanced at Rick and Daryl, and they all seemed to realise the same thing. These men didn’t know. How could they if they were trapped in here all this time.

“How long have you been locked in that cafeteria?” Rick asked.

“I don’t know, like ten months.” The Hispanic said.

“Fire broke out.” The tallest man spoke up. “Never seen anything like it.”

“We heard about dudes going cannibal, dying, then coming back to life.” Another said. “Crazy.”

“One guard looked out for us, locked us up in the cafeteria. Told us to sit tight, threw me this piece, said he’d be right back.”

“And that was two hundred and ninety-two days ago.” One of them said.

“Ninety-four if you count the-” The redhead tried to say, but the Hispanic whipped his head around and glared at him before he could finish the sentence.

“Shut up!” He hissed at him, making the other man look away in embarrassment.

“We’ve been thinking that the army or the national guard should be showing up any day now.” The tall one said, looking at Rick’s group individually for answers.

“There is no army.” Rick said.

“What do you mean?” The leader asked, his gun wavering in his hand ever so slightly.

“There’s no government. No hospitals, no police. It’s all gone.” The prisoners all froze.

“For real?” The redhead asked.

“It’s true.” Parker replied. “It’s been like that for months. It’s just us out there now.”

“What about our Moms?” The tall one asked sadly, and Parker bit her lip, thinking about her own mother.

“My kids, and my old lady.” One of them said, rubbing his shaved head and looking at the ground. “You...do you have a cell phone or something that we can use to call our families?”

“You just don’t get it, do you?” Daryl snapped.

“No phones, no computers.” Rick said. “As far as we can see at least half the population’s been wiped out. Probably more.”

“Ain’t no way.” The Hispanic said after finally taking a moment to lower his gun. Yet the scowl on his face was still there.

“See for yourself.”

***  
The prisoners all flinched when the door that led outside was pushed open, revealing the blinding Georgia sunlight and thick, heavy air. They all raised their hands to shield their eyes but trudged down the steps that led out to the main courtyard, presumably the one they knew best seeing as the closest block had been theirs. Parker kept a firm grip on her gun and followed them out alongside Rick until they were all stood in a small circle in the middle of the yard.

“Damn the sun feels good.” Redhead said, smiling slightly at the feeling of the heat washing over him. Inside the prison was cooler and filled with dark shadows and corners that made you chilled to the bone. Out here, it felt alive, even though in reality it was more dead out here than it was in there. Then the prisoner noticed the bodies surrounding them, and rubbed at his long moustache. “Oh Lord, they’re all dead!”

“Never thought I’d be so happy to see these fences.” The Hispanic grinned, ignoring him.  
“You never said.” Parker turned her attention to the shortest in the group; a scrawny young man who didn’t look much older than she was. “How did you get in here in the first place?”

“Cut a hole in the fence near that guard tower over there.” She pointed at the furthest one. “The dead started coming, so we took them all out one by one from a distance. Wasn’t that hard.”

“That easy, huh?” The scrawny kid said with a shake of his head.

“When there’s a will, there’s a way.” Daryl shrugged.

“That’s easy for you to say.” The kid responded.

“So what is this, like a disease?” The tallest asked.

“Yeah. And we’re all infected.” The prisoners all turned to Rick in shock, staring at him with confused eyes.

“What do you mean infected?” The redhead asked. “Like AIDS or something?”

“If I was to kill you, shoot an arrow in your chest, you’d come back as one of these things.” Daryl explained, pointing at the body at the man’s feet. “It’s gonna happen to all of us.”

“There ain’t no way this Robin Hood guy is responsible for killing all of these things.” The Hispanic scoffed at Daryl, and Parker sneered at him.

“Must be fifty bodies out here.” The scrawny one pointed out.

“Where did you come from?” The Hispanic asked Rick, but made sure to look at all of them individually.

“Atlanta.”

“Where you headed?”

“For now, nowhere.” Parker spoke up bravely, and the man made his way towards her. Daryl stiffened, tightening the grip on his crossbow. The man slowly nodded at her, before glancing over his shoulder and pointing to a part of the prison the group hadn’t been too yet.

“I guess you can take that area down there, near the water. Should be comfortable.”

“We’re using that field for crops.” Rick said and the man cocked his eyebrow at him.

“We’ll help you move your gear out-”

“That won’t be necessary.” Rick quickly interrupted. “We took out these walkers. This prison is ours.”

“Slow down cowboy.” The man smirked.

“You snatched the locks off our doors!” The shortest said, walking over to stand beside his cell mate. Rick stood his ground and Parker made her way to his side, holding her gun tight to her chest.

“We can help you find new locks if that’s what it takes.” Rick offered.

“This is our prison.” The Hispanic said, looking around. “We were here first!”

“Locked in a cafeteria, you mean?” Parker challenged and both of the prisoners glared at her. Daryl grunted behind them when the shortest took a step towards her, wanting him to know when to back off.

“We took it, set you free, so it’s ours.” Rick spat. “We spilt blood.”

“We’re moving back into our cell block.” The Hispanic said slowly.

“You’re gonna have to get your own.”

“It is mine!” He shouted. “I got personal artefacts in there, it’s about as mine as it gets!” He pulled out the small handgun again and everyone raised their weapons, Parker training her rifle right on the man’s head.

“Woah, woah!” The tallest in their group said, raising his hands in surrender. The redhead then ran up to the group and stepped in front of his cell mates.

“Let’s try to make this work so that everybody wins!” He said with a shaking voice, clearly he was out of his depth.

“I don’t see that happening.” The Hispanic hissed.

“Neither do I.” Rick agreed. Both men glared at each other for a long time, not breaking eye contact and keeping their bodies stiff and at attention in case one of them moved.

“I ain’t going back in that cafeteria for one more minute.”

“There are other cell blocks!” The redhead pointed out.

“You can leave.” Daryl growled, earning everyone’s attention. “Try your luck out on the road.”  
The prisoners all glanced at each other, not liking that option at all, before their leader nodded.

“If these four pussies can do this, then the least we can do is take out another cell block.” He announced, making Parker internally sigh in relief.

“With what?” The tallest asked.

“Atlanta here will spot us with some real weapons, won’t you boss?” Rick licked his lips in annoyance but seemed to agree with him.

“How stocked is that cafeteria?” Rick asked and Parker’s stomach instantly twisted at the thought of more food. “Must have plenty of food. Five guys lasting almost a year.”

“Sure as hell don’t look like he’s been starvin’.” Daryl said, glancing at the tallest of the group, earning a small glare from Parker.

“There’s only a little left.” Their leader said.

“Well we’ll take half.” Rick proposed. “In exchange, we’ll help clear out a cell block.”

“Didn’t you hear him?” The shortest scoffed. “There’s only a little left!”

“But I bet you’ve got more food than you have choices.” Parker said with a raised eyebrow, shutting the man up.

“You pay, we’ll play.” Rick said after looking at her with a proud nod. He liked how she was backing him up, it showed how much she had grown to trust him and how she herself had changed over the past year. “We’ll clear out a block for you, and you stick to it.”

“Alright.” The Hispanic man nodded after a moment to think.

“But let’s be clear.” Rick’s voice got really deep and low, almost menacing, and he took a step towards the prisoners. “If we see you out here, anywhere near our people, if I so much as catch a whiff of your scent...I will kill you.” Everyone held their breath.

“Deal.”


	19. Blood Will Be Spilled

“Pantry’s back here!” Tomas called to the others as he led them through the cafeteria. The prisoners had eventually introduced themselves properly on the long trek back to their hiding spot. Tomas was the leader, who had his gun on him at all times. The redhead was Axel. Oscar was the quietest and calmest member of the group. The shortest was Andrew and the tallest was called Big Tiny; a nickname Daryl had scoffed at upon hearing. Rick and T-Dog slowly followed behind Daryl and Parker as they walked back into the place where Hershel had been bleeding out not that long ago.

“You never tried to break out of here?” T-Dog asked.

“We tried to take the doors off.” Oscar explained, looking over his shoulder at him. “But if you make one peep in here, then those freaks would be lined up outside the door growling, trying to get in. These windows got bars on them that He-Man couldn’t get through.” The prisoners stopped just outside the fenced up window, Tomas walking inside by himself.

“Bigger than a five by eight.” Axel commented.

“You won’t find me complaining.” Big Tiny shook his head. “Doing fifteen, my left leg can barely fit in one of those bunks.”

“They don’t call him Big Tiny for nothing.” Oscar said with a small smile. Parker felt her lip twitch slightly as the huge man rolled his eyes at his friend.

“We done jerking each other off? I’m sick of waiting back here.” Tomas’s voice washed over them and made them all turn to see him in the doorway to the pantry with a scowl. Parker grunted in annoyance but marched past him to find the food, trying to ignore the feeling of eyes lingering on her as she did so. He had been staring at her since they headed back to the cafeteria, and he wasn’t afraid of her seeing either. He just raised an eyebrow, challenging her to make him stop, and it was getting on her last nerve. Unbeknown to either of them, it was really pissing Daryl off too.

The group followed Parker into the pantry, that was a lot larger than any of them expected, and when Parker rounded a corner to the cupboard containing the food, her eyes widened. Shelves of cans and packaged food lined the walls, nearly overflowing with the amount of items left over from the start of it all. These guys looked like they barely made a dent, and that got her wondering how much had originally been in here.

“This is what you call a little bit of food?” Daryl scoffed, shining his torch at the cans.

“It goes fast.” Tomas quipped back, but Daryl just ignored him and went to look through all of the food, wanting to see what was still in date. Tomas glared at him but then looked at some bags and packages to his left. “You can have some bags of corn, some tuna fish-”

“I said half.” Rick said sternly. “That’s the deal.” He looked around before seeing what looked the door leading to a meat locker, and he cocked his eyebrow. “What’s in there?” He asked, reaching for the handle.

“Don’t go in there.” Big Tiny warned and Parker frowned before Rick yanked the door open, only to reel back at the foul, sewage like stench that wafted over them all. Parker gagged as Rick quickly shut the door, covering his mouth and dry heaving. The prisoners all chuckled at them and Parker shook her head in disgust.

“He wanted to know!” Tomas smirked and Parker grunted at him before stepping further away from the meat locker, accidentally bumping into Daryl. Seeing as they were the furthest from the group, and at this point out of earshot, she turned to him and pressed herself closer so only he could hear her.

“He’s the only one I don’t trust.” She whispered, glancing subtly over at Tomas. Daryl’s eyes shifted before he briefly nodded.

“He’s an asshole. But we do what Rick says.” She frowned slightly at his words as he scanned the rest of the food.

“You really trust him, don’t you?” She said. Daryl shrugged.

“Hasn’t done wrong by me so far.” He said honestly, looking down at her with a calm expression. “None of you have.” Parker smiled slightly and was about to reach out to touch his arm when someone cleared their throat from behind them. Tomas was watching them with his arms crossed over his chest. The others were still looking around the pantry, but for some reason he had been focused on them the entire time.

“How many more women you got in your group?” He asked, setting Parker on edge almost instantly. “Heard some of them talking when you brought that old guy back.”

“That’s none of your business, asshole.” Parker said harshly, squaring her shoulders and glaring at him. Tomas scoffed.

“You got a damn filthy mouth on you, you know that?”

“Just because we have to live in the same building doesn’t mean I have to be polite to you.” She said. “So stay out of our way, unless you want to get your ass beat.” Parker then walked out of the pantry to where the others were now standing back in the cafeteria, leaving Daryl alone with Tomas. Both men looked at each after she left, and Tomas smirked.

“She yours, gringo?”

“She ain’t nobody's.” Daryl replied. “And you’re lucky she ain’t killed you yet.” Tomas laughed at that, and Daryl felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Parker was right, they couldn’t trust this guy.

“A girl’s gotta have someone, man. They can’t always protect themselves.”

“Trust me, that girl has more balls than you ever will. She can take care of herself. So keep to your cell block, and away from her, otherwise you’ll have to deal with the both of us.” Daryl started to walk away, but Tomas turned to him just before he exited the pantry.

“You trying to threaten me?” Daryl paused and then looked over his shoulder.

“I ain’t trying.”

***  
“Food’s here!” T-Dog called out to the cell block as he, Rick and Parker all hurried to the doors, their arms filled with boxes and bags full of food.

“What you got?” Carl grinned, yanking open the cell door for the others to walk through.

“Canned beef, canned corn, canned cans.” T said, setting the boxes down near the stairs. “And there a lot more where this came from.”

“Any change?” Rick asked Lori, who was standing just outside Hershel’s cell with Glenn. He looked over her shoulder to see the older man still passed out on the bed, and Parker walked closer to him to get a look too. She felt her heart ache for him, and she looked up at her brother. He had a stone cold expression on his face, and she realised she had never seen him this tense before. She set the bags and boxes down and reached over to him, wanting to rub his shoulder or hug him or something. But he did something she didn’t expect. He flinched and moved out of her reach. She stared at him with wide eyes and Glenn just shook his head and walked to his own cell. She was interrupted from her thoughts by Rick tapping her arm with something cold and hard and she looked down to see him holding his handcuffs that were attached to his belt loop.

“Put these on him.” He said gently, nodding towards Hershel. “I’m not taking any chances.” Lori and Rick then walked away to talk, but not before Lori gently patted Parker’s arm, leaving her alone in the block. She glanced over at Hershel and let out a shaky breath before stepping into his cell. She crouched by his head and took his right arm, bringing up towards the bed post, and fastening the cuffs around his wrist and the post. Once she knew he was secure, she looked down at his peaceful, sleeping face.

“Back in that bar. Back when we were on the farm, and you had run off to drink because you couldn’t take seeing Annette and Shaun come out of the barn.” Parker bit her quivering lip and smiled. “You said you were glad that I woke up. That I survived that gunshot and that I was strong.” It made talking to him even worse when he didn’t respond to her, and Parker felt tears prick in her eyes. “You said I was stronger than you, and you’re wrong. We’re both as strong as each other. And now it’s your turn, so you have to wake up too.” Her voice was beginning to shake and she leaned back a bit to catch her breath before she started crying. She wiped at her face and shook her head, her hair falling across her face.

After a few moments of composing herself, Parker looked back at him. “You have people counting on you too, Hershel. Maggie and Beth. Rick. Glenn. Me. To us...you’re the father figure that we lost. You’re the voice of reason for all of us. But to Glenn and me...you chose to be there for us. To accept us for who we are and never look back. Our own Dad never did that.” Parker let a single tear fall, thinking back to all those years ago. The last time she ever saw her father. “I don’t miss him, but I miss you.” She whispered, and reached up to kiss his forehead gently.

“He used to tell us we wouldn’t amount to anything.” She continued, reaching up to hold Hershel’s free hand with hers. “He said that...music wasn’t a good career path. That Glenn delivering pizza’s was a waste of time.” She chuckled slightly, thinking back to the days when her brother would visit her dorm room dressed in his uniform with a mountain of pizza boxes for the two of them to share. They would sit and watch movies and drink wine until the sun came up and he had to go home. She missed those days more than anything now, and thinking back on them only made her want to cry harder. Because she would never get those again. “But it’s all that we had back then. And you don’t think we’re useless. You know our strengths, and our weaknesses. And you still accept us.” Parker squeezed Hershel’s hand, wishing he would squeeze back. “So please, wake up. We need you.” Parker bent down to plant a soft kiss on Hershel’s hand before standing up and wiping her tears away.

She turned to leave the cell and grabbed hold of her gun that she had thrown over her shoulder, holding it to her chest and walking over to her brother’s cell. Glenn was sat on the bed he and Maggie shared, his head in his hands, and Parker watched him for a while before he seemed to notice her lingering shadow.

“I’m sorry.” He said quietly. Parker didn’t say anything, and Glenn looked up at her. “I know you think I’m a jackass.”

“I’ve always thought you were a jackass.” She smiled and Glenn chuckled slightly.

“Yeah. Me too.” Parker slowly walked into the cell, putting her gun to the side, and sat beside her brother. “I heard what you said. About not missing Dad.” He said after a few moments. Parker winced slightly at the mention of their father, but she cocked her head to the side.

“You don’t agree?”

“No, of course I do.” Glenn said, shaking his head. “He wasn’t a father to us. He was just some person we had to respect. That’s not a father, that’s not what any parent should just be.” Glenn sighed, running a hand over his face.

“You don’t want to lose him.” Parker said gently, taking his hand in hers. “I don’t either. But we have to be there for the others. For Maggie and for Beth. They need us, Glenn. We can’t start shutting down now.” He looked into his sister’s eyes and saw the determination inside them. She was right, he thought to himself, and nodded.

“I don’t know what I’d do if I lost him. If Maggie lost him. How am I supposed to get her through something like that?” Parker thought for a moment before shaking her head.

“Love her.” She whispered. “Protect her. Show her you’re there, and that you won’t ever give up. So she shouldn’t either. She’ll understand, and she’ll listen.” Glenn smiled at Parker warmly and put his arm around her shoulders, bringing her in for a hug. She breathed out in relief, happy that her and her brother weren’t going to start growing apart. That would never happen, she wouldn’t let it.

“That goes for you too.” He said into her hair and Parker nodded.

“I know.” The two stayed like that for a while, before someone cleared their throat above them. Both of the Rhee’s looked up to see Daryl awkwardly standing in the cell doorway, clutching his crossbow tightly to his shoulder.

“Rick says we have to go.” He said gruffly. “The prisoners want us to help them get a cell block for themselves. That way they won’t bother us.” He explained to Glenn, who obviously hadn’t heard any of the conversation Rick and Tomas had had outside. He nodded at Daryl and let his sister go, watching her stand up and walk out of the cell. Glenn looked up at Daryl again and the two men nodded at each other in understanding. Compared to how they were a few months back, Glenn would have been furious letting her go with Daryl. But now, now he knew that Daryl could keep her safe. And that nod was all the confirmation he needed.

Walking out into the recreation room made Parker feel uncomfortable, especially with all of the prisoners eyeing up the weapons Rick and T-Dog had found for them. Crowbars, bats, even a hammer. Tomas looked unimpressed and raised an eyebrow at Rick and his group.

“Why do I need this?” Tomas asked, waving the crowbar about. “When I got this?” He pulled his small hand gun again and Parker rolled her eyes. These guys knew nothing about survival, absolutely nothing.

“You don’t fire guns.” Daryl said. “Not unless your back’s up against a wall. Noise attracts ‘em, really riles ‘em up.” The prisoners all seemed to nod at that, and Tomas stuffed the gun back into the front of his jumpsuit.

“We’ll go in two by two.” Rick announced after a brief pause. “Except Daryl, you’re on point with T and Parker. I’ll bring up the rear with you.” He pointed at Andrew, who just scowled back at him. “Stay tight, and hold formation. No matter how close the walkers get. Anyone breaks ranks, we could all go down. Anyone runs off, they could get mistaken for a walker. End up with an axe to the head.”

“You don’t want that happening.” Parker commented and Tomas smirked at her, admiring her bravery.

“And that’s where you aim.” Daryl continued, eyeing Parker up carefully. He knew her temper got the better of her no matter what, and her saying dangerous shit or threatening a group of armed prisoners isn’t something they needed right now. “These things only go down with a head shot.”

“Ain’t gotta tell us how to take down a man.” Tomas joked, the others chuckling around him.

“They ain’t men.” T-Dog said calmly. “They’re something else.”

“Just remember to go for the brain.” Parker said after a long silence. “Otherwise, we’ll all be screwed.” She then marched past the prisoners, Rick following close behind her, to lead the others into the depths of the prison once again. Rick had to jog to catch up with her, and let out a quick sigh before turning to her and pulling her to one side so she had to stop moving.

“Are you sure you’re alright going in here?” He asked quietly, not wanting to draw attention as the others walked past her. Parker looked at them one by one, and felt her stomach tighten as Daryl went past with a small nod in her direction. “Because, if you don’t feel up to it-”

“I need to do this.” Parker interrupted suddenly, catching him off guard. Rick frowned at her, not quite understanding, and she licked her lips and looked at the floor. “I haven’t had a chance to blow off much steam recently. We’ve been settling in for too long and this…” She tried to come up with the right word to describe how she was feeling, but she remembered talking to Daryl in the shower room about the cabin all those months ago. It still haunted her, the way those men treated her. How they treated Carl. Rick still didn’t know any of it, just that Carl and Parker got out alive and well. That was all a parent needed to know.

But the real reason behind her anger was because of the image of her slicing that man’s throat wide open above her, the blood pouring down in buckets across her face and chest and coating her with the stench of death; it was starting to fill her mind every waking moment and the only way to get rid of it was to take her anger out of the dead. Or, what she’d rather do, take it out on the prisoners that posed a threat to her group. She refused to let anything like what happened to her and Carl happen again, ever, and she didn’t trust these men at all. She hated them, in fact, and wanted them gone. But she had to do as Rick said, like always.

“What’s going on?” Rick asked, snapping her from her thoughts. She shook her head.

“Nothing. Let’s just do what we came here to do.” She dismissed him and hurried up to the front with Daryl and T-Dog, who looked glad to see her approaching. Rick was silent at the back, not wanting to call Parker out in front of strangers, or even other members of their group. This conversation would have to wait, he thought to himself, giving Andrew a side eye glance; only to receive one right back.

“Man, it’s too damn dark in here.” Oscar said with a grunt as Daryl and Parker led the group down the corridors slowly and carefully, not wanting to be too loud and attract any walkers wandering about.

“Hold it up high.” Daryl instructed, looking at the axe Oscar was carrying that was nearly dragging on the ground. “You’ll hear ‘em before you see ‘em.”

“You always do.” Parker added, gripping her knife and shining her torch in front of her to make sure she didn’t trip or stumble. Oscar glanced between the two of them and nodded, bringing the axe up high and holding it tighter in his hand. Suddenly, the group hearing groaning from up ahead, and the dragging of feet across the dirty floor, and they all slowed to a stop.

“It’s comin’!” Axel exclaimed, only to be hushed by Rick and Daryl. As a shadow appeared in front of them, Daryl held his hand up, halting the others. He held his crossbow to his chest and waited as Parker took a few steps forward, bringing the knife up to her chin, waiting to attack. Suddenly, a couple more walkers appeared, but thankfully they hadn’t noticed the group ahead of them. Daryl then looked at Parker, and held a finger up.

“One, two, th-” He began to count, only to be cut off by the prisoners screaming in anger and charging forward at the walkers, battering them with their baseball bats and crowbars. Daryl, Parker, T-Dog and Rick all stood dumbfounded on their side of the corridor, only for their fighting stances to be dropped and for their arms to fall loosely by their sides in annoyance. They wearily watched as the prisoners stabbed the walkers in the stomachs, hit their legs, slammed them into walls, all without aiming for their heads; like they had been told to do.

Parker sighed. “Idiots.” She muttered, before barging past the prisoners, shoving Tomas out of the way, before stabbing her knife through the head of one of the walkers. Tomas glared at her whilst she expertly stabbed the other two, watching their bodies hit the ground with large thuds. She then spun around so they could see how angry she was. “Are you all that stupid?” She spat. Tomas rolled his shoulders back and stood up a little straighter as his pride and dignity started to sting.

“You'd better watch your mouth.” He warned.

Parker rolled her eyes. “Don’t give me that.”

“You assholes didn’t listen to a word we said. We told you to aim for the brain, that’s what kills them. Not beating them like you’re in a cage match.”

“We panicked!” Axel tried to say confidently, but the stare down between Parker and Tomas made his voice sound quiet and timid. “W-we ain’t used to all of this!”

“That’s why you do as we say.” T-Dog said, agreeing with Parker. “We know what we’re doing. We’ve been out there all winter, we know how to take these things down quickly and quietly.”

“All you have to do is follow our lead.” Parker said, raising a challenging eyebrow at Tomas. Everyone held their breath, waiting for his response, before Tomas nodded and his face melted into a smirk.

“You’re right, Princess.” He said, raising his hands up in mock surrender. “You’re right. From now on, you lead the way, and we’ll follow.” Parker sneered at him, but looked over his shoulder at Daryl. He seemed to take the hint and licked his lips before stepping in between the two of them.

“Come on, let’s keep movin’.” He ordered, walking off in the direction they were headed with Parker hot on his heels. The two were silent for a short while as they led the others through the narrow corridors, stopping at every corner to make sure they weren’t running into danger. Daryl then looked down at her, seeing her eyebrows furrowed in concentration, and her hand gripping the knife as it was the most precious thing in the world.

“You okay?” He asked. Parker clicked her tongue in frustration and shook her head.

“If one more person asks me if I’m okay I’m gonna use you all as target practise.” She hissed. Daryl clamped his mouth shut, before looking forward, trying to focus on where he was stepping instead of the ice cold look Parker was probably giving him. It went silent again.

“Are you?” Parker looked at him through her lashes and after a short while just breathed out through her nose.

“I will be once these guys are in their own cell block, far away from us.” She said honestly and that was all Daryl needed to hear. He then heard shuffling up ahead and brought his hand up once again to stop everyone behind him. They all halted and Daryl turned to look over his shoulder.

“It’s gotta be the brain.” He reminded them, before looking over as a walker stumbled out of the shadows towards him. “Not the stomach, and not the heart.” He then grabbed an arrow from his quiver and stepped towards the walker, watching as it finally noticed him and growled in his direction. I lunged, snapping it’s wonky jaw and reaching out towards him, but Daryl was too quick, and stabbed it through the head swiftly before yanking the arrow back out and watching the body collapse. More walkers appeared from where the first had walked out of, and the others stayed in tight formation behind him.

“We hear you.” Axel confirmed, before the first walker was upon them. Oscar went first, jumping forward and jabbing his axe into the forehead of a small, male walker with no teeth, sending it straight to the ground. He hurried back to the group and looked over at Daryl.

“Like that?” He asked and Daryl nodded. Next was Axel, using a large, metal pipe to jab into the walkers eye, stilling it instantly. Once he was back in line, Rick moved out from the back of the group and beside Parker and Oscar, before taking out the final walker with his machete.

“Stay in a tight formation!” He ordered as a few more appeared from around the corner. “And no more prisoner riot crap.” Parker took her turn and once a walker was close enough, she moved forward and kicked her foot into it’s chest, sending it into a wall, before stabbing her knife into it the side of its head. As the walkers kept on coming, Daryl started to pull Parker away from them, wanting the prisoners to have practise themselves, but Rick quickly moved his hand away as she shook him off.

“What?” Daryl asked as Parker stood beside Oscar and helped him take out a large, obese looking walker that was drooling and practically foaming at the mouth, both of them cracking its skull at the same time and sending it crashing into the wall behind it.

“Let her fight.” He said quietly, earning a look from both Daryl and T-Dog. “Trust me.” Rick said and the two had no option but to listen, watching as Parker tried to stab at every single walker coming their way, barely giving the prisoners a chance to throw a swing of their own. Suddenly, everyone heard screaming from back where they came, and Parker turned to see Big Tiny yelling out and smashing a walkers head in with his hammer. She and Rick quickly made their way towards him, helping him out as two walkers were almost upon him. Suddenly, Parker felt something whiz past her head just as the walker in front of her collapsed all on it’s own, and loud bangs echoed through the corridor, making her jump in fright. She turned, as did Risk, to see Tomas holding his gun up, smoke slowly billowing out of the end. He was glaring at both of them.

“You almost shot me!” Parker spat. Tomas shrugged.

“Wasn’t aiming for you.” He said, equally as threatening. She held her tongue then heard Big Tiny hiss in pain. She looked to see him looking over his shoulder at his back, then she noticed the huge gash across his left shoulder blade, and she felt her jaw drop. Big Tiny reached back and touched the gash, only for his hand to come back covered in blood, and Rick stared at it in horror.

“Turn around.” Rick quickly said. Big Tiny did as he was asked and Rick inspected the gash, seeing multiple claw marks that came from one of the walkers. Parker grimaced as blood started to ooze out of the wound and began to stain Big Tiny’s jumpsuit.

“I’m okay guys, I’m okay.” He said with a small smile, but Parker shook her head. The others crowded around them and watched as Rick shook his head too.

“Tiny, I’m so sorry.” She said quietly but he smiled at her.

“I’m telling you, I’m fine. I don’t feel anything!” He was trying to reassure her but she already knew the truth, and so did Rick. “It’s just a scratch.”

“I’m sorry man.” Rick said, looking down at the floor with a vacant expression.

“I can keep fighting!”

“You cut that old guy’s leg off to save his life!” Andrew said, pointing at Tiny’s shoulder.

“Look at where the bite is!” Parker exclaimed. “We can’t cut anything off!”

“Guys! I’m fine!” Tiny cried, but then took a moment to calm down, not wanting to make himself panic. “I’m fine.” He said to Rick, just wanting him to understand. “Look at me. I’m not changing into one of those things.”

“Look man, there has to be something we can do.” Oscar spoke up. “Can’t we just lock him up?”

“Quarantine him?” Axel offered.

“We gotta do something!” Andrew cried. Parker looked to Rick and then Daryl and then finally T-Dog, and they all had the same expression. They all knew what had to happen. Andrew stared at them all in shock when no one said anything. “We are you just standing there, we gotta save him!”

“There’s nothing we can do.” Rick said calmly. Andrew stared at him before slowly shaking his head.

“You son of a bitch!”

“Hey!” Parker snapped, pushing him away from Rick before he did something stupid.

“Look, I don’t-” Big Tiny tried to say before a crowbar smashed against his skull, sending him to the floor in a crumpled, groaning heap. Parker leapt back into Rick's arms, staring in horror as Tomas stepped over Big Tiny’s body, before smashing the crow bar onto his head again, and again, and again, and again. Everyone just watched Tomas beat the man’s head in, sending blood splattering all over his face and chest, coating him in his friends remains. Parker gripped onto Rick as Tomas finally stopped, struggling to stand on his shaking legs before looking both of them in the eye. As Tomas glared at her, practically staring into her soul, Parker felt her blood run cold. She watched him walk away and felt her body begin to shake. Even Rick seemed to notice and looked down at her.

“Parker?” He asked, but she didn’t respond, she was too scared. Because the look that Tomas gave her was a look she had seen before. A look that haunted her every day. Covered in blood, and desperate to kill anything that moved, Tomas reminded Parker of that night almost instantly. That evil look he had given her was the look she had given Scotty and Jed after slaughtering them. And she never realised how terrifying that really was.

“Hey.” She jumped a little as Daryl walked up to her, bending slightly so he could look into her eyes. “You good?” Parker hesitated then shifted herself away from Rick’s grasp, nodding at Daryl and looking directly at Tomas who was making his way down the corridor. She ignored Daryl’s question and let the prisoners go ahead of her, T-Dog amongst them to keep a close eye on them all. Daryl, Parker and Rick took up the rear, all of them glancing at Tomas every once in awhile. “You see the look on his face?” He said quietly, tilting his head slightly towards Rick who just nodded at him.

“He makes one move…” Rick trailed off, but Daryl knew exactly what he was asking.

“Just give me the signal.” Parker swallowed her nerves, feeling a little better that the men were just as concerned about Tomas as she was. T-Dog and Oscar eventually found a door leading away from the corridor and pushed it open, revealing a laundry room filled with washing machines and shelves of detergent and piles of clothes thrown about. It was quite spacious, and the men all crowded inside whilst Parker stayed at the back of the line, taking tentative steps into the room. She didn’t like it in here, it seemed like a dead end. Then she noticed a large set of green double doors on the opposite side of the room, and she made her way towards it. Rick and the others did the same after making sure the room was secure, and they all paused when they heard the familiar sound of walkers on the other side.

T-Dog shut the door they had just come through just as Daryl chucked his pair of prison keys at Tomas’s feet, confusing the man and making him look up at them all with a frown.

“I ain’t opening that.” He spat.

“Yes, you are.” Rick said firmly, not taking his eyes off of him. “Because you want this cell block. You’re gonna open that door, just the one, not both of them. Because we need to control this.” Parker stood near the shelves, hearing T-Dog walk up to her side, and she watched the silent exchange between leaders, hoping all of this tension surrounding them would just disappear. It was making her feel uneasy and she certainly didn’t want to get caught in the crossfire.

Tomas grunted in annoyance but picked up the keys anyway, moving in front of the doors. It took a few seconds to find the right key, but once he twisted it in and they all heard the click of the lock, he paused.

“You bitches ready?” He asked, making Parker roll her eyes. Tomas yanked on the handles, but nothing happened. He grunted and tried again, and again, and the others quickly held their weapons up in preparation for what was about to happen. “I got this.” He said, after the third pull, before grabbing both of the door handles and pulling with all of his strength, sending both doors crashing to the walls. About 10 walkers all turned and snarled at him and everyone backed up as they all started stumbling towards them.

“I said one door!” Rick shouted, getting at the front of the group as Tomas quickly backed up.

“Shit happens!” He yelled back and smashed his crowbar across a walkers head. Everyone picked a walker and started attacking, aiming only for their heads Parker took down a smaller walker whilst Daryl shot one with an arrow from across the room. One large walker practically threw itself in her direction, and she jumped back, causing her to bump into Tomas and almost throwing him off balance and into the clutches of another walker. The two glared at each other for a brief second before jumping back into action. Parker couldn’t move anywhere as more walkers were coming through, so she had to stick by Tomas’s side, however just as she put another walker down, she ducked as Tomas swung his crowbar at a walker, barely missing Parker’s head. She ducked slightly, then stood up straight to stare at the man with startled eyes. Tomas clearly didn’t seem to care, as he grinned and continued smashing walkers heads in left and right.

Parker felt that all too familiar anger build up inside of her again, and she prayed to God that it wouldn’t cloud her vision until after the walkers were all taken out. She couldn’t afford risking one of her group's lives just because she wanted to kill Tomas were he stood. However, she almost felt a scream rip from her throat as she watched Tomas grab a walker and throw it towards Rick, sending him crashing to the ground with the walker landing on top of him, snarling and snapping at him with bloodied teeth. Daryl saw it all happen as well, and quickly yelled over to T-Dog who was closest to the door.

“T!” He shouted, hurtling towards Rick. “Mind that gap!” Daryl then grabbed his knife and stabbed it through the walkers head that was on top of Rick, killing it instantly. Parker moved the walkers body off of him just as Daryl helped Rick onto his feet. Once he was up, the three turned to see the prisoners managing to put down the last couple of walkers, and once it was done silence filled the room. Rick looked at Tomas who was trying to catch his breath, adrenaline still coursing through his veins. The two men had a long stare down before Tomas shrugged.

“It was coming at me man.” He said nonchalantly.

Rick just slowly nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I get it.” Neither man looked away as the heated tension started to fill the room once more. Everyone else was completely still, not wanting to intervene but also not wanting this to end badly. “I get it.” Rick repeated. “Shit happens.” Tomas glared at him, tilting his head down to look through his lashes, and that’s when Parker saw red. She knew that look, and she knew what it meant. There was a pause before Rick began to swing his machete up, and Andrew, who was standing opposite him, screamed in protest. But Rick didn’t do anything, he didn’t have time to, because Parker’s hand gun was already pointed at Tomas’s head, and within seconds his blood and brains were splattered across the wall and most of the group’s faces. Everyone reeled back as Tomas collapsed; Parker just staring at his lifeless body with cold, unforgiving eyes, and the room went silent. Then Andrew seemed to come back to life and yelled at her, wielding his baseball bat towards her head.

“You bitch!” He lunged at her but Rick swiftly kicked him in the stomach, sending him to the ground with a hard thud. Parker then stepped towards him and kicked the bat from his hands. He looked terrified, but she didn’t care. It was like she was in a trance. She couldn’t think rationally, only wanting to see her gun fire another bullet into his head. Both her and Daryl aimed their weapons at Andrew’s head, but the man quickly stood up and sprinted out of the door before they could do anything else.

“I got him.” Rick huffed and rushed off into the darkness behind him, leaving the others in silence. Daryl turned to Oscar and scowled at him.

“Get down on your knees!” He ordered, and Oscar quickly complied, raising his hands in surrender. Axel did the same, but was clearly shaking in pure fear.

“We had no affiliation with what just happened!” He protested, but Parker snapped her gun towards his head, and he quickly looked away from her cold, harsh eyes.

“Just stop talking man.” Oscar said tiredly. Parker looked between the two prisoners before lowering her gun, catching Daryl off guard. Both he and T-Dog then watched her put the gun into it’s holster and make her way to the door they had come in.

“Where you goin’?” Daryl called out, but she didn’t respond, just yanked the door open and slammed it shut behind her, dissapearing into the darkness.

She felt numb, and it seemed like her only sense that was working was her sight. She couldn’t hear anything, it was all muffled noise. As if she was underwater, and her feet didn’t feel like they were touching the ground. But she kept on walking blindly through the darkened corridors until she saw the familiar metal bars of Cell Block C, and pushed them open with a grunt. Once she was back in the recreation room, Parker blinked up at the harsh light coming through the windows above her, her eyes stinging slightly. Being in the dark for hours on end was not doing her eyesight any good, and she rubbed at them harshly before she walked up to the cell block door.

She stepped inside, not seeing anyone else inside, before making her way over to Hershel’s cell, peering into the doorway and noticing Maggie sat beside him on a stool. He was still handcuffed to the bed and snoring softly by her side, and Parker started to feel her body return to normal.

“Hey.” Her voice croaked out, startling Maggie.

“Hi.” She replied, glancing behind her and frowning when she realised she was alone. “Are the others okay?”

“Yeah.” Parker said vaguely, and Maggie wanted to question her about it but decided against it, deciding to trust her instead. Maggie looked back down at her father with sad eyes as Parker stepped into the room and leaned against the wall behind her. “How is he?”

“The same.” Maggie said softly. “Hasn’t opened his eyes.”

“He will.” Maggie didn’t say anything else. Parker didn’t believe her words either, but it felt like the right thing to say at the time. A long silence fell between the women before Parker started to feel sick. She looked up at Maggie and bit her lip before opening her mouth. “I killed one of the prisoners.” Maggie’s head lifted and she turned to look at Parker with worried eyes. “I shot him. Right in the head.”

“Why?” Maggie asked.

“He was dangerous. Set a walker on Rick and nearly bashed my head in with a crowbar.”

“Parker-”

“He deserved it.” Her reply was blunt, unforgiving, and it clearly took Maggie by surprise as her eyebrows rose in shock. “Who knows what he was capable of.” Maggie closed her mouth and looked at the floor. Parker didn’t want to think about how cold she sounded. How harsh. The two then went back to their silent company, watching Hershel’s chest rise and fall. Hershel’s breath was ragged and rough, like he had been running for miles on end, and suddenly it sounded like he had run out of air, a strangled groan coming deep from within his chest. Parker heard two sets of footsteps from behind her and she turned to see Beth and Carl staring at Hershel with worried eyes. She looked back to see Maggie frowning at her father. That’s when Parker realised Hershel had stopped breathing.

“What’s happenin’?” Beth demanded, rushing into the cell and standing beside her sister who was now crouched on the bed and shaking her father gently. Maggie then took a step back, her arms falling to her sides, and Beth’s head whipped from staring at her then back to her father. “Do somethin’!” Beth cried once she realised what was going on, but all Maggie could do was step away and stare at Hershel’s body with a numb, yet scared, expression. Beth suddenly started to cry, pushing on her father’s shoulder in an attempt to wake him up, before shouting out into the cell block. “Somebody help!” She sobbed. “Please, help!”

“Beth!” Parker tried to reach over and grab her, wanting to pull her away from Hershel just in case, but Beth screamed at her and thrashed her hands about, not wanting to be touched. Lori then rushed into the room and moved Beth to one side before she could protest, leaning over Hershel and checking to see if she could hear his heartbeat. Beth collapsed into her older sister's arms and cried her heart out as Lori closed two fingers over Hershel’s nose, opened his mouth, and started to breath air into his lungs.

“Carl, get outside!” Parker pointed out of the cell door but he shook his head.

“I’m not leaving!” He protested and Parker began to drag him away, but she stopped when she heard the bed creak and the girl’s shrieks. Hershel had suddenly awoken, reaching up and wrapping an arm around Lori. Maggie dragged her away from him, Beth right by her side, as all of them stared at Hershel taking long, shallow breaths, before slumping back into a deep sleep on the bed. The room went silent as Maggie and Lori gripped onto one another, Beth still quietly crying in the corner, and Parker looked down at Carl to make sure he was okay, but only to see him holding his gun up and aiming it at Hershel’s head. Parker swallowed and gently placed her hand on Carl’s, pushing it down.

“It’s okay.” She whispered as he let his arms drop to his sides. “You were scared.” Carl nodded slowly and Parker took one last look at the women before slowly backing out of the cell and rushing up the stairwell. She sprinted into her cell and yanked the door shut behind her, hurling herself onto the bed and placing a hand over her mouth to cover up her sobs. She wasn’t sure if she could take anymore of this, and as she laid down in the bunk, facing the wall and shaking as sobs wracked her body, all she could think about was that not only had Hershel almost just died, but that she had once again killed a man in cold blood without even thinking about it. Without even considering the thought of what the consequences might have been. Andrew could have killed her, or someone else.

Parker then thought about the fact that she had run off, leaving Daryl and T-Dog and Rick to clear up her mess. She desperately prayed that they were okay, that they would walk through those doors any second and let her know that they made it. That she hadn’t made a terrible mistake. But as she waited and waited, nothing happened. No one came, no one spoke, and no one went to see her. So Parker allowed her body to cry itself to sleep, and for once she had no nightmares, no dreams. Just nothing. A beautiful, dark, nothing.

And it was the best feeling she had felt in weeks.

***  
“You wanna go tell her Hershel’s awake?” A faint voice asked. There was a grunt and then a short pause.

“Nah. Go ahead.”

“Daryl. It's not like how it was before, you can talk to her. I won't get angry.”

“S’not you I'm worried about.” Parker stirred in her sleep, the voices slowly beginning to grow louder with every second. The feeling of lying on the mattress came back and she groaned softly, annoyed that she had been woken up from her sleep. It had been the best sleep she’d had in months and it had been cut short by whoever was talking outside. Footsteps made their way towards her cell and stopped just outside it, probably at the sight of the door being shut.

“Hey, you awake?” Daryl’s voice echoed throughout the cell and Parker didn't have much choice but to open her eyes and glance over at him through the bars.

“I am now. No thanks to you and Glenn.” She grumbled, putting two and two together that the other voice had been her brothers.

Daryl didn't seem fazed by her grumpy attitude and just leaned casually against the bars. “You've been out for hours. He's been keepin’ an eye on you.”

“I'm fine.” Parker insisted, rolling over so she was still comfortable but properly facing him. “I was tired.”

“Carol said not to wake you yet. Thought you'd might have wanted the extra hours.” Daryl replied, and Parker smiled slightly. Carol was always acting motherly towards her, making sure she had enough food and was getting a good nights rest. She barely took care of herself anymore, always thinking about the group instead.

“You said Hershel was awake?” Parker asked after a short while and Daryl nodded, biting his lip at the same time.

“Yeah.”

“How's he doing?”

“Good. Quiet and not sayin’ much but...he's good.”

“That’s great.” She replied. “I'm glad.” Neither of them spoke for a while after that, not knowing exactly what to say. But then Daryl cocked his head slightly, watching her look awkwardly around the room as if she didn’t know what to say.

“Why’d you tell me?” He asked, and she frowned at him.

“Tell you what?”

“‘Bout what happened to you and Carl.” He said and he winced once he noticed her starting to look physically uncomfortable. “You didn’t tell the others?”

“No.” Parker said blankly. “Just you.” When Daryl didn’t respond, she looked up at him. “What, you don’t like that I told you?”

“It ain’t that.” He said, pushing the cell door in an attempt to open it, but Parker quickly stood up and pressed the door back. “What, I can’t even be in your cell now?”

“Don’t.” Parker begged and Daryl wasn’t expecting to see the tears that were beginning to well up in her eyes. He blinked at her, clearly confused and she hung her head in shame. “I didn’t want to tell anybody what happened. I was too afraid, too disgusted with myself to even think about telling someone.”

“Then why tell me?”

“I have no idea.” Parker smiled sadly at him, a single tear rolling down her cheek. “I can’t tell my brother what happened. I can’t do that to him. I haven’t even told Rick and Lori what their own son went through because I’m too afraid of what they’d think of me.”

“They’d think you were brave.” Daryl said, leaning against the bars, but not opening the door. He wanted to respect her space and not cross any boundaries. “They’d think you did what you had to do.”

“I can’t get it out of my head.” She whispered, wrapping her arms around herself, as if that would somehow make it all go away. “Seeing them lying there...their blood all over me…” She sniffled slightly and bit her lip to stop any sobs that were threatening to come out. “How do you get over something like that?”

“You don’t.” Daryl said honestly, making her look up at him. He gulped and sighed, before resting a hand on one of the bars running through the middle of the door. “You just have to keep goin’.”

“Is that what you do?” Parker took a tentative step forward and rested her own hand on the same bar only inches away from his. Daryl looked down.

“I try to.” His voice was so quiet that Parker almost didn’t hear him. Then she realised that even he wasn’t used to all the death and horror this world was throwing his way, and her heart broke for him. She looked at their almost touching hands and slowly moved hers to rest on top of his, her fingers weaving between his and squeezing. When he locked his eyes onto hers, she smiled at him the best she could.

“Then I’ll try with you.”


	20. Goodnight, Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS!  
> It's been way too long since I updated my favourite story, so here you go! More Parker and Daryl...and sad scenes to write...we all knew it was coming.   
> I hope that even though this is a short chapter, that it was still a good one. Thank you for being patient and I hope you guys still love Park and Daryl as much as I do.   
> See you again soon!

Rick and Parker watched from beside the prison gate as Carol backed one of their trucks into the main field, parking it near one of the fences and hopping out. Since dawn broke Rick had been dead set on trying to turn the prison into a suitable living environment for everyone; wanting his group to feel comfortable and safe from now on. But Parker knew he was also secretly trying to make Lori feel safer. The two barely spoke, Parker had noticed that for days now, but Rick still obviously cared about her well being enough to think about the baby. And she admired that. She admired how good of a Father he was.

“Okay, let’s get the other car in.” Rick said, pointing at one of the smaller vehicles parked down the gated path leading up to the prison. “We’ll park them in the west entry of the yard.”

“Good.” Daryl said, walking up behind the two of them. “Our vehicles camped out there look like a giant vacancy sign.”

“After that, we need to load these corpses so we can burn them.” T-Dog grunted in disgust as the small group started to make their way up the track to the gate. 

“Gonna be a long day.” He muttered, shaking his head.

“Where’s Glenn and Maggie?” Carol asked, walking up to stand next to Parker. “We could use some help.” Parker physically shuddered and Carol frowned at her. “What?”

“They’re-”

“Up in the guard tower.” Daryl finished for her, pointing towards the tower on the north side of the prison. Everyone turned to look up at it, not seeing any sign of human life up there.

“Guard tower? They were just up there last night?” Rick sounded so confused that it almost made Parker laugh, but she restrained herself.

“Glenn! Maggie!” Daryl yelled, cupping his hands around his mouth so his voice travelled across the yard. After a few seconds the door of the guard tower opened to reveal a shirtless Glenn hastily doing up his pants, and Parker scoffed and shook her head at him.

“Hey!” He called back down awkwardly. “What’s up guys?” The others all started laughing amongst themselves, ignoring Parker’s red cheeks.

“You comin’?” Daryl called and Parker nearly fainted.

“What?” Glenn yelled back.

“You comin’?” Daryl emphasised on the word as much as he could, glancing over at Parker who was now glaring at him. He was grinning, and even if Parker thought he looked ridiculously attractive like that, he was also making her feel extremely uncomfortable. 

Carol, T and Rick were all giggling amongst themselves like a bunch of teenagers and Parker smacked Daryl’s shoulder. “Would you please stop? That’s disgusting.” She hissed.

“Come on, we could use a hand.” Daryl called up with a laugh, playfully pushing Parker with his shoulder.

“O-okay! We’ll be down in a minute!” Parker turned her back before she could see her brother walk back inside the tower, heading towards the other cars parked down the path. Daryl quickly walked after her and smirked.

“You seriously that mad?” He asked and Parker rolled her eyes.

“I’m not mad, it’s just...gross.” 

Daryl raised an eyebrow and the two stopped walking to face each other. “Gross. You think Glenn and Maggie together are gross?”

“No, that’s not what I said!” Parker protested but Daryl smirked again and she slumped her shoulders. “Someone’s in a good mood today.” She pointed out and Daryl shrugged.

“I ain’t allowed to be in a good mood?” He asked. Parker cocked her head to the side and bit her lip.

“It’s just nice to see. That’s all. Even if you start being a pain in the ass.” Daryl scoffed.

“Can’t have one without the other.” 

“Well, it’s a good thing I want both, isn’t it.” Parker said and the two suddenly realised how close they were standing, almost toe to toe. 

“You shouldn’t talk like that.” He said quietly, hearing Carol and Rick not too far behind them. Parker smiled.

“Why not?”

“Just shouldn’t.”

“Do I make you nervous?” Parker smiled. At first Daryl looked away from her, but then managed to stare right into her eyes.

“Ain’t nothin’ out here that makes me nervous.”

“Except for me.”

Daryl was about to say something else when everyone turned at the sound of T-Dog’s concerned voice.

“Hey, Rick.” They all stopped once they spotted Axel and Oscar, the two surviving prisoners, walk out of the main gate, heading straight towards them. Rick started to march his way towards them and nodded at T-Dog and Daryl.

“Come with me.” The five of them walked up the small hill in the yard until they were standing in front of the guard tower Maggie and Glenn were in, stopping a few feet in front of the two prisoners. “That’s close enough.” Rick warned Axel and Oscar, standing at the front of the group with Daryl and T-Dog flanking him. Daryl protectively stood slightly in front of Parker, but she moved her way closer to him so their arms brushed against each other; a small sign to show him that she was there, right by his side. And even though he wouldn’t admit it, her presence was enough to calm him down, let alone her touch.

“We had an agreement.” Rick said, resting his hand on his gun.

“Please, Mister.” Axel begged. “We know that. We made a deal.” As he spoke, both Maggie and Glenn rushed out of the guard tower, stopping once they saw the confrontation going on. Glenn and Parker shared a look, and nodded at one another, making sure they were both okay, that the situation was okay. “But you gotta understand.” Axel continued. “We can’t live in that place another minute, you follow me? All the bodies, the people we knew. Blood, brains, everywhere. There’s ghosts!”

“Why not move the bodies?” Parker asked.

“You should be burning them.” T-Dog added.

“We tried, we did.” Axel replied.

“The fence is down on the far side of the prison.” Oscar spoke up, catching everyone’s attention. “Every time we drag a body out those things just lineup. Dropping the body and just running back inside.”

“Look! We had nothing to do with Tomas and Andrew. Nothing!” Axel exclaimed, walking right up to Rick and causing the others to nervously step forward, protecting him. “You trying to prove a point? You proved it, bro. We’ll do whatever it takes to be apart of your group! Just please, please, don’t make us live in that place.”

“Our deal is non-negotiable. You either live in the cell block, or you leave.” Rick replied instantly, and Parker glanced at him hesitantly. He was serious about this, but then again she couldn’t blame him. The last time he allowed someone else from outside their group to stay around he got killed in the woods. 

After a pause, Oscar looked up at his friend. “I told you this was a waste of time.” Then he glanced at Rick. “They ain’t no different than the pricks who shot up our boys.” Everyone went still. “You know how many friends corpses we had to drag out this week? Just threw them out, like...these were good guys.” Oscar said. “Good guys who had our backs against the really bad dudes in the joint, like Tomas and Andrew. Now we’ve all made mistakes to get in here, Chief. And I’m not gonna pretend to be a saint, but believe me. We’ve paid our due. Enough that we would rather hit the road than to go back into that shithole.”

There was a long silence, and Parker watched in anticipation as Rick looked over his shoulder at Daryl, who merely shook his head, before looking back at Axel and Oscar. The next thing they knew, Daryl was leading them out to the main gates with nothing but the clothes on their backs, before nudging them out and locking the gate shut. Parker shook her head as she watched Daryl tie the chain around the fence lock, before he walked back over to her. 

“I don’t think this is right, man.” T said with a shake of his head once he was back with the group.

“Are you serious?” Rick asked in disbelief. “You want them living in a cell block next to you? They’ll just be waiting for a chance to grab our weapons. You wanna go back to sleeping with one eye open?”

“I never stopped.” T-Dog said, and Parker swallowed. He had a point, even she couldn’t completely fall asleep without her knife under her pillow anymore. That’s just how the world was now. “Bring them into the fold. If we send them off packing, we might as well execute them ourselves.”

“I don’t know.” Glenn shrugged. “Axel seems a little unstable.”

“After all we’ve been through?” Carol jumped in. “We fought so hard for all of this, what if they decide to take it?”

“It’s just been us for so long.” Maggie pointed out. “They’re strangers, I don’t...It feels weird all of a sudden havin’ other people around.”

“She’s right.” Parker nodded. “We’re better like this, we don’t need anyone else right now.”

“You brought us in.” T-Dog said, looking back at Maggie who just shrugged her shoulders at him.

“Yeah, but you turned up with a shot boy in your arms. Didn’t give us a choice.”

“They can’t even kill walkers.” Glenn said. 

“They’re convicts, bottom line.” Carol added on.

“Those two might actually have less blood on their hands than we do.” T-Dog said, and something ran up Parker’s spine, giving her a chill that made her shudder. He was right about that. 

“I get guys like this.” Daryl grunted. “Hell, I grew up with ‘em. They’re degenerates, but they ain’t psychos. I could have been in there with them just as easy as I’m out here with you guys.” Parker tried not to look too shocked at his words. Even though there was some truth in what he was saying, she couldn’t picture him in prison. Even just a jail cell. And she hoped he had never been in one before the turn. 

“So you’re with T?” She asked. Daryl looked down at her and scoffed.

“Hell no. Let ‘em take their chances out on the road, just like we did.”

“What I’m saying, Daryl-”

“When I was a rookie, I arrested this kid.” Rick suddenly interrupted and everyone turned to him. “Nineteen years old, wanted for stabbing his girlfriend. Kid blubbered like a baby during the interrogation, during the trial, suckered the jury. He was acquitted due to insufficient evidence, and then, two weeks later, shot another girl.”

“Oh my god.” Parker said quietly, and everyone else seemed to be thinking the exact same thing.

“We’ve been through too much.” Rick continued. “Our deal with them stands.” He then started making his way back to the prison, Daryl following right behind him. Parker walked past T-Dog and gently placed a hand on his shoulder, hoping it would show him that she was sorry, before following the men. 

 

***

Once all the vehicles had been moved inside the main yard of the prison, the group split up. Maggie, T-Dog and Carol all moving the cars around to face the main gate so they would have a good getaway system, whilst Daryl, Glenn, Rick and Parker walked down to the main perimeter, stepping out of the hole cut into the fence and onto the grassy marsh near the lake. There was a female walker just across from them, snapping her broken jaw, and Parker instantly grabbed her gun from its holster.

“Should I take her out?” She asked, aiming it high and closing her left eye to focus. 

“No.” Rick shook his head. “If that armory hadn’t been picked clean, we could spare the ammo.” Parker sighed, but put her gun away, stepping back and leaning against the fence as Rick and her brother walked further down the lake. Daryl stayed behind, surveying the area, before realising he had company.

“What’s up?” He asked. “You’ve been moody all day.” 

Parker chuckled. “Sorry. The heat is getting to me.”

“It’s Georgia. Suck it up.” Daryl said casually, as if he wasn’t sweating buckets himself at this point. Parker smiled at him and watched as Glenn and Rick chatted under their breaths. Neither were paying attention to them. She slowly walked up behind Daryl and ran her hand across his broad shoulder blades, making him tense up slightly. “What are you doin’?” He asked, but the only answer he received was Parker walking round to his front then pressing her lips to his. 

It still felt weird to him, having a girl kiss him like that. But for some reason he didn’t freak out. Usually, if Parker actually had the guts to kiss him like this, her arms wrapped around his neck, tongues touching, and her feet barely touching the ground, he’d reel back and tell her to knock it off, that they had more important things to do. But the heat must have been getting to him too, because he really didn’t want to push her away this time. But eventually it got difficult to breathe and he put his hands on her hips to push her down and away from his now swollen mouth. Parker bit her bottom lip and laughed slightly.

“Sorry.” She whispered. “I didn’t mean to-”

“S’alright.” Daryl said quietly, blinking down at her. There was a long pause and the two of them just stared at each other before someone whistled. Glenn and Rick were heading their way again and both of them were smirking. Parker rolled her eyes and punched her brother’s shoulder as Daryl coughed awkwardly and stepped through the hole in the fence, only to see a site in the prison yard that made him smile.

“Looky here.” He said, holding the fence open for the other three, and once all of them were through they saw it too. Hershel, Lori, Beth and Carl were all walking around the courtyard, and Parker grinned once she saw Hershel using crutches. He seemed so natural with them already, and only seemed to wobble when Lori pushed too hard on his chest to keep him upright. 

“He is one tough son of a bitch.” Glenn said with a shake of his head and her sister laughed before she started jogging back up towards the prison, wanting to congratulate Hershel herself. She heard her brother cheer him on, only for Daryl to ssh him, and she beamed. She hadn’t felt this good in a while, none of them had, and it was good to have a happy memory every now and then. 

“How you feeling, Pops?” Parker asked, almost completely out of breath by the time she got to the yard. Hershel smiled at her, liking the nickname she had started to give him over the past few months. The two had a strong, father-daughter bond now, and Glenn thought of Hershel like his father too. Neither of them really had that sort of figure in their life until now, and neither were going to throw it away so easily. 

“Never better.” Hershel said. 

“Hey Hershel, ready to race?” Carl smiled and Parker ruffled his hair once she snagged his hat away, making him whine and desperately reach up to get it back from her arms. 

“Give me another day.” The old man said just as Parker gave in and planted the Sheriff's hat on Carl’s head. “I’ll take you on.”

Maggie, Carol and T-Dog then all walked out from where they had parked the cars and smiled at seeing Hershel walking around so freely. Parker smiled down at Daryl from where he was standing at the hole in the fence, and she had a feeling he was giving her his own smile back, but then she saw something in his face falter, and she frowned. Then she heard the growls.

“Walkers!” Carl yelled, and Parker whipped her head round to see a group of ten to fifteen walkers trudging towards them. She instantly pushed Carl behind her and grabbed her gun just as Lori and Maggie did the same. Beth and Hershel hurried towards one of the staircases leading into the prison as the women starting firing at the walkers, taking a couple down before Parker heard the click of her weapon falling empty.

“Shit, Maggie!” She called out, backing up and pushing Carl with her, until they were beside Lori. Maggie ran in front, taking down another walker, before one got a little too close and shoved Parker to the ground, pushing Carl out of her reach. 

“Parker!” Lori cried out, but suddenly fired another shot as a walker lunged at her son. 

“Shit, shit!” Parker breathed, realising the others had too many walkers to deal with before getting to her, and tried to kick it away. It’s huge, sagging body was slowly starting to weigh her down and she felt tears of frustration starting to build up, so she did the only thing she could think of, and screamed: “DARYL!”

Suddenly, blood splattered across Parker’s face and she looked up to see Maggie standing over her, pistol to the walkers head, and she kicked the body off of her. 

“Come on, we gotta move, now!” Maggie ordered, pulling Parker to her feet and running towards another set of stairs. “Lori! Here!” Parker confirmed that Beth and Hershel were safe once she saw the two lock the door to the staircase they were on, and helped Maggie usher Lori and Carl past them and through a door leading inside. The four of them ran down the steps leading to the recreation room and up to their cell block, only for Maggie to yelp as four walkers emerged from their cells.

“This way!” Parker called, pointing at the door leading off into the tombs, and Maggie pulled Lori and Carl with her, slamming the door shut after them. Parker and Maggie jogged down the corridor, their guns high and ready to fire if any walkers came from around the corners. Lori was a few paces behind whilst Carl was taking up the rear, his own gun raised and a determined look on his face. He had to protect his mother now, as well as Maggie and Parker. His Dad was right, no more kid stuff. 

Suddenly, all of them jumped in fright as a large alarm started blaring throughout the prison, catching them all off guard.

“What the hell is that?!” Parker hissed, bracing herself against a wall and checking round the corner, finding nothing.

“I don’t know, but it’s gonna attract more of ‘em. Come on!” Maggie ordered, leading them down a left corner and into a corridor with multiple other corridors leading off from it. They had no idea where they were, or where they could go, but they had to get somewhere safe. 

“Ahh!” Lori grunted, leaning against a wall and holding her stomach. Parker’s eyes widened and she rushed to her, as did Maggie.

“Can you keep up?” Maggie asked.

“Something’s not right!” Lori’s voice was strained, and Parker winced as her body shook in pain.

“Are you bit?” Carl cried.

“No, no, no!” Lori shook her head and turned to face her son. “I think the baby’s coming!”

“Mom?!” Carl exclaimed just as a large group of walkers started to trudge towards them from one of the hallways. Parker swore under her breath and grabbed Carl before making sure Maggie had Lori beside her, then led them back the way they came. Lori was panting and trying not to cry out too loud, but the pain she was feeling in her stomach was starting to become too much for her to handle. As they were about to turn down the hallway leading back up to Cell Block C, more walkers appeared, and Carl quickly ran to the left, calling for the others to follow him. “In here!” He said, yanking open a metal door that was attached to a long set of metal stairs. The three women hurried in after him as Carl desperately tried to shut the door, eventually having to ask Parker to help him. The two grunted and heaved before finally the felt the door click shut, the walkers on the other side shuffling past with low growls. The four of them went as fast as they could down the steps, not wanting to push Lori too much, before reaching the ground floor of what looked like a large boiler room. 

“Lori, let’s lay you down.” Maggie suggested as they moved out of sight from the door and into the centre of the room. Lori was leaning against one of the pipes, her forehead glistening with sweat and a tired look on her face.

“No, the baby’s coming now.” She said, nearly out of breath. 

“We have to get back to our cell block and have Hershel help!” Carl said, but Parker shook her head.

“If we get caught up there that’s it.” She said. “I’m not letting them happen.”

“She’s right. You’re gonna need to give birth to this baby here.” Maggie agreed, gently rubbing Lori’s back to comfort her. 

“Great.” Lori sighed. She suddenly started hyperventilating, and Maggie bit her lip worryingly.

“What is she doing? Can’t she breathe?” Carl asked, confused as to what was happening. 

“She’s fine, come here. Let’s get your pants off!” Maggie said, unbuckling Lori’s jeans and dragging them down her thin legs. 

“Okay. Okay.” Lori breathed out, trying to steady herself and calm herself down, but with each passing second that was becoming increasingly more difficult. Maggie and Parker then helped Lori down the floor, laying her down and pulling her underwear off.

“You’re gonna need to help me deliver your brother or sister, you up for it?” Maggie asked Carl, looking up at him. He didn’t respond at first and Parker looked up at him too.

“You can do this, kid.” She said reassuringly. “I’ll be right there with you.” Carl nodded and kneeled by his mother’s head, holding her hand. 

“I’ll do an exam. Let me see if you’re dilated.” Maggie pushed Lori’s knees apart and bent her head down. 

“Do you know how?” Carl asked.

“Dad taught me, but trust me this is my first time.” Out of respect, Parker moved to Lori’s hips and rubbed her arm as a long pause dragged out. Maggie shook her head with a sigh. “I can’t tell.”

“I’ve gotta push.” Lori shook her head, getting Parker to help her back on her feet. Maggie then held Lori’s hips as she braced herself against one of the pipes again and breathed out, Parker standing by her side. Lori then took a deep breath and pushed. Parker then jumped in shock as Lori cried out in agony. “Somebody!” Parker and Maggie both reached out for her, but Lori quickly shrugged them off. “I’m okay! I’m okay…”

“You’re doin’ great, Lori.” Maggie encouraged her. “Just keep doin’ it. Your body knows what to do, let it do all the work.” Maggie then reached down and held her hand between Lori’s legs, as if waiting to see the head straight away. Parker stepped back slightly, giving the women their space, before wrapping an arm around Carl’s shoulders. 

“It’ll be alright kid.” She said quietly as Lori pushed once more, but the second those words left her mouth, Lori screamed. 

“Lori! Stop, don’t push! Somethin’s wrong!” Maggie yelped, pulling her hand from Lori’s thighs to reveal blood as Lori sobbed, her body clearly wracked with sudden pain. 

“What...w-why is she bleeding?” Parker asked, wishing her voice didn’t fail her so much and show how scared she was. Especially in front of Carl. Maggie glanced hastily at Parker and gave her a nervous look, a look that made Parker feel sick. Something was wrong. Something was seriously wrong. 

“Parker, help me lay her down!” Maggie then said as Lori’s knees started to buckle. She was building up a clear sweat on her brow and she was shivering violently, and all Parker could do was hold her hand and gently kneel to the ground, letting Lori come with her. Maggie was on the other side of her, biting her lip and trying to keep herself calm. Carl on the other hand had no idea what was happening and was panicking, looking up at the main door leading back out into the tombs, as if a walker was going to barge its way inside and take them by surprise. At that thought, he held his gun just a little tighter.

“Lori?” Parker said, shaking her shoulder until she looked up at her with tired eyes.

“God, god this hurts.” She seethed, gritting her teeth and breathing out slowly, before her eyes started to droop. Parker shook her head and shook her shoulder again.

“Mom?” Carl exclaimed, collapsing beside Parker and reaching for his mother’s limp hand. “Mom, look at me! Look at me, keep your eyes open!” He begged.

“We have to get you back to Dad.” Maggie said firmly, but Lori suddenly shook her head with the little energy she had left.

“I’m not gonna make it.” She whispered and Parker felt her throat close up.

“Lori, don’t say that!”

“Park-” Lori tried to say, but hissed and held a hand over her stomach. They all shushed her, not wanting to put herself through too much stress. 

“Lori, with all of this blood...I don’t even think you’re fully dilated yet.” Maggie said, glancing down at Lori’s blood soaked clothes. “No amount of pushin’ is going to help.”

“I know what it means.” Lori said. “And I’m not losing my baby. You’ve gotta cut me open.” Parker froze.

“What?” Maggie started shaking her head as Parker ran a hand through her hair.

“No. I can’t!” 

“You don’t have a choice.” Lori breathed out, staring down at her. Carl all of a sudden jumped up, making Parker grab at him.

“I’ll go get help!”

“No!” Lori shouted, stopping him in his tracks. Carl turned and stared down at his weak Mother, and frowned. 

“Look, Carol’s the one that practised that.” Maggie explained, trying to make Lori see that this wasn’t the way to do it. It wasn’t safe or hygienic, none of them were prepared for any of it. “Dad only taught me the steps...Lori, if I-”

“Maggie, please.” Lori said firmly. 

“I have no anesthetic, no equipment!”

“Carl has a knife.” Lori said, looking at her son’s holstered hunting knife. Parker shuffled closer to Lori and ran a hand over her forehead soothingly.

“I can get out of here, go get Hershel.” She said with what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “I-I can get him here safely and on time and he’ll do this the right way!”

“There is no time left!” Lori said with a small shake of her head. “Maggie has to do this. All of you do.”

“But you’ll…” Parker didn’t want to finish her sentence, especially when Carl returned to her side. 

“You won’t survive.” Maggie finished her sentence for her, and everyone went quiet.

“My baby has to survive.” Lori eventually said. “Please. My baby. For all of us, please! Maggie, please!”

Maggie shook her head, tears started to fall down her cheeks. Lori let her head fall back against the ground in defeat.

“Please.” She quietly asked. Parker had a thousand thoughts racing through her head at that moment, but the one that stood out was that this was Lori’s dying wish. And she couldn’t let that die with her. She had to at least...try.

“Tell me what to do.” Parker said, her voice a lot stronger and firmer than it was before. Maggie and Carl both looked up at her in shock. 

“What?” Maggie breathed.

“Tell me what I need to do, like Hershel told you, and I’ll do it.” Parker said, looking down at Lori. “Is this what you want?”

“Yes. Yes, it’s what I want.” Lori instantly nodded her head frantically. Parker nodded herself, and then looked at Maggie, who looked like she was going to throw up.

“What needs to happen first?” Parker asked. Lori then suddenly reached down and pulled up her ratty old shirt, revealing her bare stomach and a small, thin scar across her abdomen. “You see my old C-Section scar?” She asked. 

“We can’t.” Maggie refused once again, sniffling through her words.

“You can. You have to.” Lori said breathlessly. 

“Maggie, please, just tell me what to do!” Parker begged, reaching over and holding her free hand. It was shaking like a leaf and covered in sweat. Maggie had never looked so terrified before, and Parker didn’t blame her. What they were about to do was insane, potentially dangerous, and it was going to completely alter Carl’s life. Parker looked over at Carl, who was just staring at his Mother with sad, tear filled eyes. 

“Carl?” Lori said, reaching out towards him. “Baby, I don’t want you to be scared, okay? This is what I want.” She said. “This is right.” After a short pause, Lori sniffed and looked her son dead in the eyes. “Now you take care of   
your Daddy for me, alright? And your little brother or sister, you take care-”

“You don’t have to do this.” Carl choked out, breaking Parker’s heart into a million pieces. She bit her lip, not wanting any whimpers to come out as Lori smiled up at him. 

“You’re gonna be fine.” She promised. “You are gonna beat this world, I know you will. You are smart, and you are strong, and you are so brave. And I love you!” 

“I love you too.” Carl sobbed. 

“You gotta do what’s right, baby.” Lori whispered, holding his hand in hers. “Promise me you’ll always do what’s right.” Parker gripped Maggie’s hand for dear life and the two girls sat there, watching a mother and her son say their goodbyes, and it was the saddest thing they had ever seen. Parker knew that years down the line, if she managed to make it that far, she would still remember this moment. The moment Lori died, the moment Carl lost his mother, and the moment Rick would lose his wife. The moment Parker would lose a friend. It was all happening at once, and it was all too much. But she couldn’t run away, she couldn’t leave. She had to stay, do what’s right. Do what Lori wanted. “You’re so good.” Lori said proudly, running her thumb across Carl’s cheeks to wipe away his tears. “My sweet boy!” She grinned. “You’re the best thing I ever did! And I love you!” She then pulled Carl down onto her chest, gripped onto him, and sobbed into his shoulder as he did the same into hers. Parker felt the tears flowing freely now, and she couldn’t hold back the small choke of agony that left her throat at the realisation that this was it. This was really happening.

“Okay, okay now.” Lori gently kissed Carl’s head, before pushing him back upright. She breathed out, and then looked down towards Parker and Maggie. “Parker?” She said, and the girl quickly lifted her head. “I need you to promise me, too.” Parker hurried over to Lori’s right side, sitting opposite Carl, and leant down to hear her better. Lori reached for her hand, and Parker took it gratefully. Lori sniffed, wiping at her eyes, before smiling up at Parker. “You’ve always been good to us. To me, to Carl. And Rick trusts you with everything he has, I know he does. So, please, take care of my boys. They’re yours now. Please, promise me, Parker.”

She nodded without hesitation. “I promise. I promise.” Parker felt a wave of emotions wash over her and she started to softly cry. Even though they didn’t speak as much as she wished they had now, Lori was the only mother figure she had besides Carol, and losing her was like losing her own mother...all over again. 

“I’m sorry.” Parker whispered. “I’m so sorry this is happening.”

“No, no don’t be sorry.” Lori smiled, wiping Parker’s tears just like she had done with Carl’s. “Never be sorry.” Lori then pulled Parker’s hand up to kiss it, before glancing at Maggie. “Maggie, when this is over you’re going to have to-”

“Sssh!” Maggie hissed, not wanting to hear it. She was crying loudly now, and Parker rushed back to her side, crouching in front of Lori’s out stretched legs. 

“You have to do it! It can’t be Rick!” Lori exclaimed. Parker turned to Maggie and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“You can do this. Okay? We both can.” Parker said as strongly as she could. Maggie stared into her eyes, desperately trying to believe her. “Just tell me what to do.” Maggie let out a sob before sniffing harshly and wiping at her face. She was as ready as she was ever going to be. It was time. 

“It’s alright.” Lori said, as Carl slowly handed over his knife to the girls. “It’s alright.” She exhaled slowly as Parker lifted Lori’s shirt up more to reveal her scar in the light. “Goodnight love.” Lori whispered, staring up at the ceiling, and Parker had to bite her lip again. Parker took Carl’s knife and placed the blade at the start of the scar, not pressing against the skin to cause a dent, but enough to make Lori shiver at it’s cold touch. Then Maggie placed her hand over Parker’s.

“I’ll do it.” She said grimly, taking the knife and sitting closer to Lori. Parker backed up slightly, allowing her space, before Maggie looked at Lori one last time. “I’m sorry.” She whispered, before dragging the blade gently across her stomach, making Lori scream louder than she ever had before. 

“Stop it!” Carl yelled, desperately looking at his mother as she writhed about in pain. Parker sobbed loudly, holding her hands over her mouth and looking away, not being able to see the look on Lori’s face as Maggie cut into her belly. Parker watched in horror as Lori’s body shuddered and jerked before her eyes started to close, her head sagging to the side and leaving no sign of movement. 

“Carl, give me your hands.” Maggie instructed after a few seconds. She had started to pull Lori’s stomach open, wanting to reach in and get the baby, but Carl wasn’t paying attention. He was just staring at his mother. “Carl, please!”

“Let me.” Parker said, sniffing and shuffling to Maggie’s side, gingerly doing what Maggie told her to do. She pressed her hands on Lori’s stomach and pulled, giving Maggie enough room to reach her hands inside. “Just keep this site clean, okay?” 

“Okay.” Parker nodded, the only other thing she could hear in the room apart from Maggie’s words were Carl’s soft cries, and she wanted to go over and hug him. But she stayed where she was as Maggie then seemed to bolt upright. 

“I see it! I see the ears! I’m gonna pull it out.” She said, more so to herself than the others, and Parker watched in amazement as Maggie slowly started to pull something from inside Lori. “I can’t tell if this is the arm or the leg.” She said, reaching in deeper. “Okay, I’m gonna pull the baby out. Keep this as a wide as you can.” She told Parker, who just nodded. Carl watched in just as much awe as Parker as Maggie eventually pulled the tiny, pink baby from inside Lori, bringing it out into the open air. But nothing happened. There was no movement, no crying, and Parker held her breath. Maggie gently rubbed the tiny baby’s stomach, patting it every few seconds to try and start it’s heart, before turning it over onto it’s front in her arms and doing the same to its back. Within seconds, cries filled the room, and Parker had never felt such relief. 

Carl pulled his jacket off and handed it to Maggie, who carefully wrapped the baby up, keeping it nice and warm. Parker noticed just as Maggie wrapped the baby up that it was a girl...and she smiled for a brief moment. Parker took Carl’s knife and cut the umbilical cord, just before Maggie stood up on shaking legs. Parker then reached her arms out to Maggie.

“Let me.” She offered quietly, and Maggie nodded before handing the tiny girl to Parker, watching as she cradled her close to her chest and cooed down at her to try and calm her down. “You’re okay, little on.” She whispered, nuzzling her nose against her forehead. Parker and Maggie then stepped towards the stairs leading to the door. 

“We have to go.” Maggie ordered, but Carl jumped up.

“We can’t just leave her here!” He protested, staring between the two girls with wide eyes. “She’ll turn…” Everyone went quiet, before Maggie took the knife from where it was lying on the floor and took a step towards Lori. But Carl blocked her and shook his head.

“No.”

“Carl-” Parker said, clutching the little girl to her chest as Carl pulled out his gun. 

“She’s my Mom.” He said firmly, and neither Parker nor Maggie could do anything else. Maggie reluctantly headed up the stairs leading out of the boiler room, allowing Carl time alone, whilst Parker stared at him.

“Carl, you shouldn’t have to do this.”

“I have too.” He said sadly. He looked up at her with wet eyes and nodded at the stairs. “I’ll follow you.” He turned to Lori, his back now facing Parker, before he clicked the safety off the gun. Parker hurried to catch up to Maggie, not wanting to see what was about to happen. Maggie was shutting the boiler room door by the time she reached her, and the two girls huddled together, trying to keep the baby warm, before both of them jumped at the sound of a loud gunshot erupting through the room. They looked at each other, before seeing Carl walking towards them, a harsh scowl on his face. He didn’t even flinch or look up at them as he walked past, just headed straight out of the boiler room door, expecting them to follow him. And they did. 

No walkers bothered them on the way back through the tombs and up into the recreation room where they first started. Carl led the way, with Parker and the baby in the middle, and Maggie bringing up the rear. Carl stormed his way through the recreation room, past the tables and chairs and up the small, concrete steps that led to the main entrance, before he stopped, his hand on the door knob. Parker swallowed the lump in her throat and stepped towards him. 

“Carl?” She asked softly. His head turned, as if he wanted to look at her over his shoulder, but he decided against it and swung the door open, leading the girls down into the main prison yard. That’s when the baby started to cry again. Parker looked up to see Rick, Daryl, Glenn, Hershel and Beth all staring at them from across the yard, Rick’s face in complete shock at the sound of the little girl’s cries. Parker stepped out into the sun, Maggie trembling and sobbing behind her, as Carl stiffly walked out ahead of her, not looking at anyone.   
After a pause, Rick slowly made his way towards Parker, dropping the axe he was carrying onto the ground, and rubbed his face tiredly. He looked like he’d just run a marathon, and that only made Parker want to cry harder. He was so tired, he was never going to catch a break. And now this…

“W-where...where is she?” He asked, looking between the three of them with a confused look. Rick then surged forward, heading towards Carl, and Maggie desperately tried to grab at him.

“No, Rick!” She begged, but her sobs overtook her body and she broke down, stepping away from him as the realisation of what had happened hit Rick like a ton of bricks. He let out a desperate cry, before turning to his son, that still hadn’t moved or looked at anyone yet. 

“No, no, no, no, no!” Rick belted out as he cried, trying to keep himself upright on unsteady legs. 

Glenn walked over to Parker and Maggie, but Parker shook her head, nodding at him to go to his girlfriend. She needed a lot more comforting after what she had to do. Glenn looked hesitant, clearly wanting to comfort his sister too, but did as she wished and pulled Maggie into his chest, letting her cry into his already dirty shirt. Parker stood there, holding the baby in her arms, before she felt something brush the skin of her shoulder. She looked up, finding Daryl to be looking down at her with a sad expression, before she leant her head into the crook of his neck and softly cried. Daryl wrapped his arms around her, careful not to crush the baby, and watched as his leader, the man he considered a friend, collapsed to the ground in a heap. 

“S’okay.” Daryl whispered into Parker’s hair. “It’s gon’ be okay.” She pressed her nose against his collarbone and stroked the little girls’ head that was now laying against his broad chest, and she sniffed.

“No it’s not.” She whispered back sadly. All Daryl could do was hold her closer, it was either that or admitting that she was right. Nothing was okay anymore.


	21. Realisation

She was holding the baby close to her chest, rocking her back and forth, but part of her body was covered by someone else, someone else that was kneeling down in front of her. Rick blinked, before finally recognising Daryl’s face squinting down at his own, waving a dirty hand in front of his face and calling out his name. Rick eventually realised it was Parker stood in front of him, and then he saw the tiny bundle in her arms, and he went back to daydreaming all over again.

“Is he going to be okay?” Parker asked, turning her body round to look at Hershel, who was still holding Beth in his arms as she trembled.

“He’s in shock. I think we all are.” Hershel told her, and Parker nodded, before turning back to look at Rick who was still hunched over on the ground, just swaying slightly from side to side. He looked like he was in a trance, or under a spell, and she just wanted him to snap out of it and say something to them. Anything.

“Rick, you with me?” Daryl asked as the tiny baby girl started screaming again.

“Come on, sshh.” Parker cooed, rocking her arms and smiling down at her. She once babysat for her neighbors for four weekends in a row, so looking after children wasn’t completely new to her, but a newborn that she had helped deliver herself? She was surprised she could still stand up on her shaking legs after all of that.

“Parker?” She looked down to see Carl standing in front of her with his arms outstretched, and she gladly handed his little sister to him, who he held tightly to his small chest.

“Let me see the baby.” Hershel called out and Carl and Parker, along with Daryl with by her side, wandered over to the old man.

“What’s it gon’ eat?” Daryl asked, his voice agitated and stressed. “We got anythin’ a baby can eat?” Hershel didn’t say anything at first, just pulled Carl’s jacket aside that was keeping her warm and inspected her face and arms.

“Well, the good news is, she looks healthy.” He said to Daryl. “But she needs formula, and soon, or she won’t survive.”

“Nope. No way.” Daryl instantly shook his head and threw his crossbow over his shoulder. “Not her. We ain’t losin’ nobody else. I’m goin’ for a run.”

“I’ll back you up.” Maggie said.

“I’ll go too.” Glenn added, just before Parker could jump in and say her piece. But before she could even open her mouth, Daryl spoke again.

“Okay, think where we’re goin’. Beth?” Daryl motioned for her to walk over to the side and began talking to her in a hushed tone, leaving Parker to the side on her own with a small frown.

“Hey, you doing okay?” She turned to see her brother looking at her and she shrugged.

“Think I’m in shock. Like Hershel said.” She whispered, and Glenn sighed before pulling her into a tight hug, which she gladly accepted.

“I’m so sorry, P.” He said into her hair and she just squeezed her eyes shut and tried her hardest not to start crying again.

“It’s what she wanted. Lori.” Parker explained, eventually loosening her grip and stepping back. “She asked me and Maggie too…” She hesitated and Glenn just put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Don’t. Not yet. Let’s focus on the baby, alright?” He said, and all she could do was nod.  
“You two by the fence. They start pilin’ up we got a problem!” Daryl directed towards Oscar and Axel, who Parker only just realised were standing in the corner away from the others.

“Glenn, Maggie, vamanos!” Just as Daryl finished barking out orders, Parker turned at the sound of footsteps coming her way to see Rick storming over to the axe he had dropped on the ground.

“Rick?” She asked, getting everyone’s attention, only to panic as he grabbed the axe and sprinted into the prison where Maggie, Carl and Parker had just come out of. “Rick!” But he ignored her completely and slammed the door once he was inside, leaving everyone outside speechless.

“Get the gate.” Daryl said. “Come on, we’re gonna lose the light!” He shouted. Maggie gently nudged Parker’s arm so she followed Daryl, and the three of them hurried behind him.

“There’s a Piggly Wiggly at 85?” Glenn said, throwing the first suggestion for baby products at them.

“No, the baby section’s been cleared.” Maggie disagreed. “Lori asked me to keep an eye out, I haven’t had much luck.”  
“Is there any place that hasn’t been completely looted?” Daryl asked, taking his crossbow off his back and securing it to his motorcycle.

“We saw signs for a shopping centre just North of here.” Glenn suggested.

“There’s too much debris on the road.” Maggie pointed out.

“She’s right, it’ll take too long to get there and back and time is not on our side anymore.” Parker said, folding her arms. “Besides, the car would never get through there.”

“I can take one of ya.” Daryl then said, looking between Maggie and Glenn, and both of them paused, giving each other looks.

“I’ll go.” Maggie eventually said, and Glenn went over to her, presumably to try and change her mind, but Parker tuned them out so she didn’t get caught up in a conversation that wasn’t hers. Instead, she turned to Daryl, who was already sitting on his bike and waiting for them.

“Surprised you’re not beggin’ to come with me this time.” He pointed out, checking his gun for ammo. Parker looked back up at the prison and sighed.

“I promised Lori that I’d take care of Rick and Carl. So that’s what I’m gonna do.” Daryl looked up at her, and for a second it looked like he was disappointed she wasn’t going, but eventually he shrugged.

“Probably for the best.” He said. “You and your brother are our only hope at defending this place right now.”

“We will. Just come back in one piece, okay?” She said, as Maggie grabbed the things she needed and walked over to them.

“Let’s go.” She said, and hopped onto the Chopper behind Daryl. He kicked the engine to life, and gave Parker one last nod of encouragement before he sped off towards the front gate that Axel and Oscar had pulled open for them. Glenn walked over to his sister’s side and the two watched as the two people they cared about most in this world other than each other sped off into the distance.

“She’ll be okay.” Parker said reassuringly, recognising that familiar look of uncertainty on her twin’s face.

Glenn nodded. “I know. And so will Daryl.” Parker didn’t say anything, but her brother wrapped an around her shoulder and led her back to the main yard. Hershel, Beth and Carl were all sat at one of the tables, Carl rocking his new baby sister in his arms and smiling down at her. Parker couldn’t help but smile too, it had been a while since Carl looked this happy, especially under the circumstances.

“Maggie went with him?” Hershel asked, getting up on his crutches again with Beth’s help.

“They’ll be back soon.” Parker said. “For now, we need to keep this place running smoothly. They all paused, before Glenn rubbed a hand over his face.

“We need graves.” He said sadly, and Parker frowned.

“Graves, plural?”

“We lost T and Carol.” Hershel said, and Parker stared at him in shock. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. We didn’t have a chance to tell you earlier.”

“Oh my god.” Parker breathed.  
“I’m sorry.” Beth said quietly to her. “I know Carol was a good friend of yours.” Parker just blinked, staring at the ground in shock.

“T-Dog too. He saved the both of us when it all started.” Glenn said. “We would never have made it here without him.”

“We can honour their memory by giving them proper funerals.” Hershel said, moving to the twins and looking directly into their eyes. “That’s how we deal with things.” The two of them nodded, and Glenn decided to walk over to one of the fields in the prison and start digging to take his mind off of everything. Parker then ushered Beth and Carl into cell block C, telling them to take the baby into the recreation room and keep her warm and out of the glaring sun.

“What about you?” Hershel asked as the two kids made their way inside. She shrugged.

“Sit up in the guard tower with my gun and wait for Daryl and Maggie to come back. I can keep watch, make sure the perimeter is secure.”

“You don’t have too. Come inside with us, rest.” Hershel said, cocking his head to the side. “You’ve been through a very traumatic experience, Parker. You’re in shock. There will come a point where you won’t be able to handle it anymore.”

“I need to do something until Daryl get’s back, Pops.” She said with a shake of her head. “I can’t just...do nothing. I’ll go insane.”

“That’ll never happen.” Hershel smiled reassuringly, and Parker couldn’t help but return the gesture. “Come on, for now, we need to keep that little girl safe.” He then hobbled his way back into the prison, and at first Parker didn’t follow him, she just looked across the prison yard, seeing all the bodies and the blood. A few hours ago, they were happy. Lori was still here, Hershel could finally move on his own, and she had Daryl. Now, she just felt alone again. And that was the worst feeling in the world.

***

Hours passed before Glenn decided to try and find Rick. No one had seen or heard from him since he disappeared and it was starting to annoy Carl more than anyone. He wanted his Dad to be here, not just for him and the group, but for his new child. He didn’t understand why his Dad had left him all alone, and Parker was trying her best to comfort him.

“Like Hershel said, he’s in shock. Shock makes people do stupid things.” She explained. “But he’ll come back. I promise you.”

“What if he gets himself killed?” Carl snapped unintentionally. “What if...what if he gets bit? What do we do then? Just sit around waiting for someone else to come and lead us?”

“Carl, that’s not going to happen and you know it.” Parker scolded, trying to keep her voice down as the baby that was now bundled up in Beth’s arms, coughed. They had finally managed to get her to calm down for a little while and whenever she cried the echoing walls of the prison didn’t help. “You’re scaring yourself, and you can’t do that. Just have faith in him. Your Dad is a good man, he always has been. He’ll bounce back from this.” Carl didn’t say anything, he just turned his back on her and went back to taking his handgun apart.

“Parker?” Glenn called out, jogging into the recreation room and peering round to the cells. “You got a second?”

“Yeah. I’ll be right back.” Parker said, but Carl ignored her. She sighed and followed her brother out to the small set of stairs leading into the guard’s office. “What’s up?”

“We need to try and find Rick.” He said quietly, not wanting the others to hear. “He needs to come up here and be with us, his kids.”

“We have no idea where he is.” Parker pointed out. “He didn’t even know where Lori and us were hidden.”

“He’ll scour the prison until he finds her.” Glenn said sadly. “I just...we need him. And he needs us. Please, Park. We have to bring him back.” Parker thought for a moment, before sighing.

“Alright. Let me tell the others. Gear up.” Glenn nodded and went over to their weapons stash as Parker returned to the cells. Beth was the first to notice her return.

“Is everythin’ okay?” She asked, the baby wiggling in her skinny arms.

“Yeah. We’re going to find Rick.” Carl looked up from where he was sat and stared at her. Hershel, who was lying on his bed, sat himself up and watched her. “We need him here and...so does the baby. Glenn and I are going into the tombs and we’re locking you guys in here with some weapons until we get back, okay?”

“You sure you two will be alright?” Hershel asked and Parker nodded.

“Don’t worry. We’ll come back as soon as we can.” Parker then walked over to the baby and kissed her tiny head. “You behave.” She whispered, before smiling at Beth, Hershel and lastly Carl, who was still scowling, before heading over to the door and locking it shut behind her. Glenn then threw her a gun and the two headed down into the tombs, once again locking that door once they were inside.

Parker led her brother down the many zigzagging corridors until she slowly started to remember some of them, recognising the place Lori first started feeling contractions, and ushering Glenn after her. Soon, however, the twins were met with the unpleasant sight of bodies...lots of them.

“There’s more than a dozen.” Parker whispered, as they both shone their torches down at the ground, realising they would probably have to step onto the bodies to even get past. “They weren’t here before.”

“He’s been through here.” Glenn said with a grim face, before turning left and trying his best not to walk over the bodies too much. Parker hurried after him, and the two soon came to a small room leading off to multiple corridors. And that’s when Parker saw the axe.

It was dripping in blood, fresh blood, and still held tightly in Rick’s right hand. He had his back to them and was staring at the wall, and both of the twins looked at each other before tip toeing towards him. He was covered head to toe in blood, dirt and sweat, as if he had just ran through a herd. They had never seen him like this before, and it was starting to put them on edge.

“Rick?” Glenn called out gently, not wanting to startle him. But he didn’t move. He didn’t even seem to react, as if he couldn’t hear him. “Everybody’s worried about you. You shouldn’t be in here.” He tried again, and this time Rick slowly turned around to face them. Parker held her breath once his eyes met hers, his icy blue orbs no longer seeming friendly and welcoming, but deadly and fierce, as if he would snap at any moment.

“Come with us.” Parker pleaded, but he could only stare back at her without saying a word. As the seconds ticked by, Glenn slowly stood in front of him, trying to give him a comforting smile.

“Rick, you don’t have to do this all by yourself.” He said. “Okay? Our cell block is cleared. We’ll just close off all the doors again.”

“Nothing’s going to hurt us now.” Parker added.

Rick looked between the two of them, as if weighing up his options, but still didn’t respond.

“Rick, why don’t you just come out with us, okay? Rick?” Glenn bravely placed a hand on his shoulder, but before he could even blink Rick had him pinned against the wall with his axe at Glenn’s throat.

“Rick!” Parker yelled as Glenn struggled against his friend’s tight grip, and gasped out for air with a loud choke. She held her gun up but Glenn put his hand up to stop her, shaking his head before licking his lips and carefully looking Rick in the eye. Something passed between the two men, and Parker watched in amazement as Glenn nodded his head slowly.

“Yeah,” He whispered. “Yeah, it’s me.” Rick paused, before grabbing Glenn’s shirt and throwing him to the side, right by Parker’s left shoulder, and she wrapped her arms around her brother before dragging him back to the hallway they came from for safety. The Rhee twins stared sadly at their fallen leader, watching in despair as he sauntered further into the tombs, leaving them both in total darkness, and with no idea what to do next.

***

Hours passed, the sun started to set, and Daryl and Maggie hadn’t come back. The baby had stopped crying now, and was still in Carl’s arms as he sat in his bunk, with Beth and Hershel sat on either side of him. They had all taken care of her whilst Glenn and Parker were gone, walking around the prison to try and make sure every door was bolted shut, every gate was locked, and every fence was hole free. They couldn’t have any more surprises that night, especially with the baby around.

Glenn offered to do the last check outside alone, leaving Parker to guard the others, and was nearing the end of his shift when Parker started to really get anxious about Daryl and Maggie. She kept tapping her foot and looking at the cell block main door, hoping that she would hear the faraway rumble of the Chopper and they would all come bursting in. But they didn’t.

“Parker?” Hershel called to her, and she looked over with a small smile. “You doing okay?”

“Yeah. How is she?” Hershel smiled.

“The same since you asked five minutes ago. Don’t worry.” After a brief pause, Parker heard Hershel get off the bed and use his crutches to move towards her, taking a slightly unsteady seat on the recreation table she was sat on, and put his hands on her shaking ones. “They’re coming back.”

“I know.” Parker nodded, looking at her feet. “It’s just…”

“You worry about him too much.” Hershel finished for her and she laughed.

“Yeah, I do, don’t I?” Hershel sighed and looked at the door himself.

“She was my first child.” He said. “She was the thing that made me realise how much of an ass I had been growing up. Because she was exactly the same.” The two chuckled, knowing Maggie’s fiery personality had gotten her into trouble when she was younger, and even when she was in college. Parker had been like that too, with Glenn being the perfect child. “But I think that’s what makes me worry about her the most.”

“What does?” Parker asked.

“She’s brave. Too brave. That’s what we clash on.” Hershel said, looking back at Parker. “I’d much rather prefer to be here, helping from the inside, as a doctor. But she would rather be on the front lines with you and Glenn.” Parker blinked and bit her lip, knowing Hershel was right. Maggie was a fighter, she had proved that more than any of them. Hershel then moved his hands from hers and rested them on his lap, only to smile at Parker almost teasingly.  
“Your Daryl is a fighter too.” Parker went red.

“He’s not-”

“He is.” Hershel chuckled again. “He always has been. But I never asked, how did the two of you meet?” Parker frowned, not knowing where the question had come from. But Hershel explained a moment later. “Rick told me that you were all at Atlanta. That you and Glenn saved him from walkers from the start.”

Parker smiled, remembering when her brother had pointed out the Sheriff scrambling to get inside the tank that had been abandoned in the street as the walkers just kept on coming.  
They had both argued about whether to leave him, Parker instantly wanting to get back to Andrea and T-Dog and the others, but Glenn, being the good natured person that he was, refused to just leave some innocent guy behind.

“He thought he could help us.” Parker said to Hershel. “He didn’t want to leave anyone behind. That’s just who he is.” She then paused, remembering the question Hershel had asked her. “But Daryl and I...we met when we first joined the camp on the hill. Where Dale, Andrea and her sister Amy had been staying. We had been there for a week or so before Merle and Daryl Dixon showed up. Merle on his bike and Daryl riding that stupid old truck of his.” Parker couldn’t help but smile over the memory. She had thought they were both so scary and rough, Merle especially since all he did was flirt with her, trying to get her into bed. That pissed Glenn off to no end, giving the two a reason to hate each other. “Merle was an asshole.” She said and Hershel laughed softly. “He was loud, and brash, and drunk nearly every day. But Daryl...Daryl was different.”

“He still is.” Hershel pointed out.

Parker nodded. “Yeah, he is. He’s nothing like Merle. They’re blood, and they come from the same upbringing, but they were never the same. Daryl used to be loud and outspoken, but that was just to compete with his brother, he was never really like that. When Merle would be the centre of attention Daryl would just stand back and let him be. Because he didn’t want to be like him.”

“He hated me the first time we met.” Parker snorted, remembering the dirty look Daryl had given her when she tripped over his tent and knocked down his miniature fire pit where he was cooking squirrels. “I just seemed to piss him off no matter what I did. Merle would laugh at me, tease me, call me a hot mess, but Daryl just glared at me and stayed silent.”

“But look at you two now.” Hershel said, leaning back in his seat a little to get more comfortable. “It’s like you two are attached at the hip.” Parker shrugged.

“We weren’t always this close but...I suppose things change.”

“The world changed.” Hershel said, glancing at the door just as Parker did the same. “He’s good for you. Just like Glenn is good for Maggie.”

“You really think so, Hershel?” Parker asked genuinely.

“I do.” He said, grinning at her. “And he’ll come back. You know he always will.” She nodded, and there was a long silence before a far off rumble made Parker’s ears twitch. She sat up in her seat and grabbed her gun, running towards the door, before she stopped and turned to Hershel. “We’ll be fine, go!” He chuckled, shooing her away with a big smile. She returned it, and yanked the door open and running off into the night.

Her brother was on the guard tower closest to the main gate, ordering Oscar and Axel to pull it open. Parker hoisted her gun to her shoulder and fired at a few stray walkers that were attracted by the motorcycle in the distance. Glenn fired a few shots himself, just as the gate was pulled open enough for the bike to come hurtling through, both Maggie and Daryl riding on it in one piece.

Daryl quickly parked the bike up and Maggie hopped off the back, a large bag thrown over her shoulder.

“You got everything?” Parker asked and she nodded before heading towards the prison. Parker let her brother follow his girlfriend whilst she looked over at Daryl who was grabbing his crossbow and jumping off the bike.

“They okay?” He asked, jogging up to the main door leading into the cell block.

“They’re fine, come on.” Parker pulled his arm for him to go faster as they both suddenly heard the cries of the baby again. Maggie and Glenn were hurrying down the steps into the recreation room and Maggie called to her sister to help her with her bag whilst Daryl immediately rushed towards Carl.

“How’s she doin’?” He asked. Daryl then gently pulled her from Carl’s arms, giving the kid a break, and bundled the tiny girl up against his chest, wanting to keep her as warm as possible. Carl and Hershel walked over to Maggie and Beth whilst Parker watched in total amazement as the baby slowly started to calm down, her screams and cries evolving into tiny gasps and whimpers as Daryl shushed and rocked her. Beth quickly handed Daryl a now full bottle of baby formula, and stepped back as he started feeding the little girl, the only noises now coming from her mouth were those of relief. Everyone stepped back and watched as Daryl seemed to completely transform into a new person, rocking the baby back and forth and encouraging her to drink.

Parker couldn’t keep her eyes off of him. She had never thought, in a million years, that Daryl Dixon could take care of a newborn baby. But he did, and he was smiling the entire time. He looked up, grinning at everyone in the room, before his eyes finally landed on Parker. “Come here.” He said gently and she blinked before shaking her head.

“I-I’m not very good with kids.” She stumbled over her words but Maggie chuckled behind her.

“Carl’s practically your kid at this point, go on. You’ll be fine.” She said and Parker sighed before slowly walking over to Daryl and the little girl, standing at where the baby’s head was laying against his bicep, before looking down at her. The little girl’s eyes were closed but seemed to open the moment Parker came close, and Parker smiled without meaning too.

“Hey.” She whispered, and reached a finger down to stroke her cheek. “Hey, tiny.” Parker smiled before looking up at Daryl. “She looks so small when you hold her.” Everyone chuckled at that, realising that Carl had been holding her all this time so of course the moment a fully grown man held her she’d look minuscule.

“She got a name yet?” Daryl asked Carl, only for the young boy to shrug.

“Not yet.” He said. “But I was thinking...maybe Sophia? Then there’s Carol, too.” Parker looked at the baby sadly and kept running her finger over her soft skin, thinking about Carol and wishing she was here to see Lori’s tiny bundle of joy for herself. She had been so excited for the baby to come weeks ago, and now here she was. But no Carol. “And Andrea. Amy. Jacqui. Patricia.” Carl continued before looking at the floor and letting out a shaky breath. “Or...Lori. I don’t know.” Carl turned away, letting Hershel wrap an arm around him, before everything went quiet again.

“Yeah, you like that?” Daryl cooed softly as the baby eagerly started gripping at the bottle.  
“Huh? Little ass-kicker?”

“Daryl.” Parker snorted, nudging his shoulder with her own, but he just beamed down at her and looked up at everyone else.

“That’s a good name, right?” Everyone couldn’t help but laugh, even Carl was smiling again. Parker let her free hand that wasn’t touching the baby to rub up and down Daryl’s back soothingly, as if thanking him for easing the tension, and he smiled at her before looking down at the little girl in his arms. “Little ass-kicker. You like that, huh? You like that sweetheart?”

“Okay, for now we’ll call her that.” Parker said, and everyone nodded.

“For now.” Daryl agreed. And the little girl seemed to smile up at the both of them with her tiny blue eyes, meaning she liked that idea too.

“Hey, you okay?” Maggie whispered to Glenn, holding onto his hand.

“Yeah.” He nodded. “Much better now you’re both back.” He said, before gently pressing a kiss to her lips. Maggie leaned her head against his shoulder and sighed, watching as Parker and Daryl fawned over the baby.

“They look good together, don’t they?” She said and Glenn scoffed.

“You gonna tell me you told me so?”

“Maybe one day.” Maggie teased, squeezing his hand. “But I mean...like that. With a baby.” Glenn instantly turned to her with a deep frown.

“What are you saying?” He asked nervously and Maggie rolled her eyes.

“I’m not saying they’re having a baby or should, jesus.” She giggled. “I’m saying, that’s what they could have one day.” Glenn hesitated before looking at his sister and Daryl once again, taking in the image of seeing his sister the happiest she had been since this all started, standing next to the man she deeply cared about with a baby in his arms. And Glenn imagined what that would be like.

He imagined a world that hadn’t changed, everything was the way it should be. He was still with Maggie and maybe Daryl and Parker were somehow together. He imagined Lori, Carl and Rick hosting barbecue's in their back garden and inviting the Greene’s over alongside T-Dog and Carol and Dale and Andrea and...everyone. He imagined how happy they all would have been. And then he imagined Parker with a baby of her own, something their mother had always wanted. He saw her with the tiny bundle in her arms as everyone congratulated her and fussed over her. And he imagined Daryl standing right by her side, holding her hand, and smiling down at her. Proud to say that this was now his family, this was his. And Glenn smiled. That’s what he wanted for Parker, that was the life she deserved. Hell, that was the life Daryl deserved.

So Glenn stood there, holding the love of his life’s hand, as Daryl and Parker had their moment together with the baby, and prayed to whatever was watching over them that his sister got everything that she deserved out of this life. And in that moment he also silently promised to her that no matter how much they argued, no matter how much the disagreed or clashed, that he would never let Daryl get hurt. Because he was Parker’s person, just like Maggie was to Glenn.

And there was no way in hell that he was going to let either of them get away.


	22. Taken

When Daryl woke up the next morning, he realised within seconds he wasn’t in his own bed.

At first he felt shocked and sat up on the mattress, only to feel something move in his arms and groan, and he looked down to see Parker curled up in front of him, hogging most of the blankets and clinging onto his arm for dear life. He sighed; that’s when he remembered. He hadn’t even asked, nor had she offered, it just happened. The first night with the baby had been rough and everyone was exhausted trying to calm her down, but Parker had been told by Hershel to get some rest after she had gotten up for the fifth time that night, and so Daryl made sure she stayed exactly where she was...by holding her against him so she couldn’t move.

It had worked, somehow, and she had passed out the moment she felt his warm skin come into contact with hers, and even though he was sweating due to the heat and desperately needed a shower, he didn’t want to move. So he laid back down and rested his head against his free arm, watching the back of Parker’s head for a while before it moved.

“You awake?” She whispered, her voice cracking slightly. He nodded, then realised she couldn’t see him, and moved closer.

“Yeah. I’m awake.” She sighed.

“We should get up.”

“Don’t wanna.”

“We have a baby to take care of.”

“Maggie’s been takin’ care of Glenn just fine.” Parker snorted and smacked Daryl’s arm, making him chuckle, which made his chest rumble against her back. It was oddly comforting and she ended up pressing herself closer. Daryl paused, and raised his head a little. “Hey.” He said softly. “Turn around.”

“Why?” She asked.

“I wanna see you.” He replied. She hesitated before switching onto her left side, blinking her eyes open and smiling up at him.

“You sleep okay with me here?” She asked, her fingers absentmindedly playing with the collar of his shirt. Daryl just nodded and let her do what she wanted.#

“Did you?” He said, trying to steady his breathing as her fingers wound themselves into his hair.

“Better than I have in weeks.” She smirked and he rolled his eyes but allowed himself to melt into her touch. “You like having your hair played with, don’t you?” She teased as he closed his eyes and nuzzled his head into her hand.

“Maybe. You complainin’?”

“Not at all. I find it fun.” She admitted. “I like seeing you like this.”

“Like what?”

“You. The real you, I mean. Not that hardass who rides a motorcycle and wears a poncho.”

“I thought you liked the poncho?” Daryl practically pouted, opening his eyes and frowning at her. Parker could have died at how cute he looked.

“Of course I do, I just think I’d look better in it.”

“Is that your way of tellin’ me you want it?” He raised his eyebrow.

“Possibly. Is that okay?”

“Ain’t ever given a girl somethin’ of mine before.” He said quietly. “But if you want it, it’s yours.”

“Thank you.” She smiled. She was about to lean forward and kiss him, but she was surprised to see he was already leaning in. He captured her lips softly with his own and used his hand to hold onto her waist and pull her in closer. Parker put both of her hands on either side of his face and deepened the kiss, letting her tongue barely touch his, teasing him and making him want more. Parker nearly melted when she tugged his hair and heard him moan, just like she had done back at the mansion in her bedroom. She could never get enough of that sound, and there was a large part of her that wanted to hear it go on and on for hours. And with the way Daryl was rubbing her sides and the fact that he was getting more and more aggressive with the kiss, suggested that maybe she would get what she wanted after all.

Then the baby started crying.

“Shit.” Daryl pulled away just before she muttered the curse word under her breath. “I cannot catch a break.” Daryl smirked and shook his head before sitting up and stretching on the bed. Parker was left on her own against the mattress and frowned at him. “You’re just gonna leave me here?” She asked as he scooted himself off the bed and pulled his shoes on, shrugging a jacket on over his bare arms.

“You comin’?” He asked, ignoring her whiny tone and secretly patting himself on the back for getting her like that.

“Apparently not.” Parker muttered when Daryl turned his back on her. She rolled her eyes, knowing that her duties to take care of the group came before fooling around with Daryl, and got up herself, shrugging on a jumper and pulling her boots on so she felt more covered up. Daryl watched from the bed as she started to walk towards the door with a sour look on her face, and grabbed her hand before she could escape. Parker looked down at him, then watched him rise from his sitting position so he was facing her. He then leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips, catching her completely off guard. It didn’t last long, but there was something behind it that Parker hadn’t felt from him before, and it took her breath away.

“Smile, at least.” Daryl said. Then walked to the cell door. Parker stood awe struck in the middle of the room, until Daryl turned to her and lifted his hand to hers. “Come on.” She glanced at it, and hesitantly took it in her own, intertwining their fingers slowly, as if he was about to pull away like he always did. But he didn’t. Instead, he led her out through the main cell block and into the recreation hall where everyone else was sat. Beth had the tiny baby cradled in her arms whilst everyone else was sat around the room with bowls of what looked like rice pudding; one of the many canned goods Rick and the men had taken from the prisoners. Oscar was in the corner of the room, looking very uncomfortable. Everyone’s heads rose when they heard footsteps and a few eyes cast down to Parker and Daryl’s clasped hands, but nothing was said. Hershel however gave them both a smile and even nodded at Daryl, who gave one back without hesitation.

“Did she wake you?” Hershel asked, looking down at the baby who was now sucking on Beth’s finger.

“Just a little bit.” Parker joked, taking a seat next to Carl and grabbing a bowl from her brother, who kindly poured some of the rice pudding into spare bowls for her and Daryl. He took a seat across from Parker on the stairs leading out of the building, and started wolfing down his breakfast without a moment’s hesitation. Before Parker began eating herself, she turned to Carl, who was dead silent and staring at the bowl with sad eyes. Poor kid, she thought, and rubbed a hand over his shoulders. “You doing okay?” She whispered.

“I guess.” He said quietly back, not looking up. “Tired.”

“Me too.” She said, and went back to her breakfast. Silence passed over the group for a long time, no one really wanting to talk, or feeling the need too. They lost people yesterday, good people, and this was their only real chance to mourn them. Parker thought about T-Dog; the brave man who saved her and Glenn at the very start. Without him, they’d be walkers by now, roaming Atlanta in a haze with the rest of the city. He was so kind to her, always joking and making her laugh even in the toughest of times. She then thought about Carol, the only woman who really understood her in their group. She was fragile, but not weak, and knew when Parker needed her space and knew how to cope with her when Daryl was getting on her nerves at the start. She was just...there for her. And now she was gone. Parker then finally thought about Lori, and that made her eyes well up. She was motherly to everyone, only wanting what was best. She cut her hair. She held her hand when she was sad. She never stopped thanking Parker for saving her son, for her and Glenn saving her husband when he was trapped in the tank. She was always thankful to her.

“Parker?”

She shuddered as she heard Lori’s voice as clear as day in her head.

“I need you to promise me, too.”

She hung her head low, slowly spooning the rice into her mouth, not wanting anyone to see the small tears falling down her cheeks.

“Rick trusts you with everything he has. I know he does. So please, take care of my boys.”  
Parker squeezed her eyes shut.

“They’re yours now.”

“Everybody okay?” Everyone in the room looked up to see Rick emerging from the tombs, slowly making his way into the room. He looked like a lost dog with its tail between its legs, head low and a shameful look on his face. Parker’s mouth dropped slightly in shock but she clamped it shut as he looked over at her.

“Yeah.” Maggie spoke up. “We are.”

“What about you?” Hershel asked.

“I cleared out the boiler block.” Rick said, glancing over at Parker and Glenn, knowing what they had both seen down there, before looking down at his son. Carl just stared right back at him.

“How many were there?” Daryl asked from across the room.

“A lot.” Parker said, no emotion in her voice, and Rick looked at her again. His face twinged with guilt as she almost glared at him. He knew she wasn’t happy with him leaving, he didn’t think any of them were particularly proud of him for abandoning them. But he did what he had to do.

“A couple dozen. Maybe more.” Rick said after a pause, then patted Carl’s back. “I have to get back but...I just wanted to check on Carl.” Carl said nothing, and looked away, making Rick bite his lip nervously.

“Rick, we can handle taking out the bodies.” Glenn said, standing up and moving to his sister’s side. “You don’t have to. Parker and I can-”

“No.” Rick interrupted. “I do.” Parker bit her tongue, wanting so badly to speak out against him, point out that he has a newborn he needs to take care of, he has a son he needs to take care of. He can’t just keep wandering off and leaving it to everyone else. But she didn’t, she knew it would only get her into more trouble, so she just silently watched as Rick walked over to Daryl. “Does everyone have a gun and a knife?”

“Yeah.” Daryl nodded. “Little low on ammo though.”

“Maggie and me were planning on making a run this afternoon.” Glenn said, surprising his sister.

“You were?”

“We wanted to find some places that maybe we could get some formula.” Glenn explained.

“Don’t worry, it’s nearby. We were only going for an hour or two.” Maggie reassured her with a small smile. Parker looked between the two of them before giving in.

“Only an hour or two.” She said, looking up at her brother who just nodded.

“I promise.” Her brother smiled. She just looked away.

“We cleared out the generator room.” Daryl said, breaking the tension. “Axel’s there tryin’ to fix it in case of an emergency. We’re gonna sweep the lower levels as well.” As he said this to Rick, Parker tried to keep the pride she had for him concealed. He was a good leader, Daryl Dixon, but he would never call himself that. He only trusted Rick to lead him; anything he asked of him, he would do. Without hesitation. That was true loyalty.

“Good.” Rick said, and started walking back towards the tombs. “Good.”

“So that’s it?” Parker asked, no longer being able to keep her mouth shut. She stood up as Rick turned around to look at her, a tired look on his face. But she didn’t care. “You’re just going to go back down there?” No one said anything, and Rick looked down at his feet. Parker could tell he was getting angry, but he didn’t want to lose his temper with his son right in front of him.

“I’ll be back.” He grumbled.

“When?” Parker demanded. Everyone waited, but she didn’t get an answer. Instead, Rick stormed out of the room and back into the tombs. Hershel called out his name but he slammed the door and disappeared into the dark hallway without a second thought. Parker’s shoulders sagged in defeat and she shook her head, marching over to their weapons cache, grabbing her gun and a metal pipe that they used to kill the walkers that were getting too close to the fence, and barged past Daryl on the stairs until she was out the door. If Rick could storm off and ignore his responsibilities, then so could she.

***

Glenn stood at the top of the yard, looking across it at his sister as she took out walker after walker by the fence. He sighed. She was taking her anger out, which in a sense was a good thing. But knowing her, it was a bad thing too. She was upset, she was disappointed in Rick. They all were. But that was how he was mourning his wife, and they couldn’t just take that away from him. Glenn turned at the sound of footsteps on gravel and saw Daryl walking over to him, crossbow in hand and poncho over his shoulder.

“She still out there?” He asked, nodding at the fence.

“Has been for hours.” Glenn said. “How are the tombs looking?”

“Empty. For now.” Daryl said. He, Carl and Oscar had taken their time walking around down there, only having to take out a handful of walkers in the end. And even then, they were all weak and easy to kill. He thought bringing the kid with him was a good idea, maybe get some anger out of his own. But Carl had barely killed any. Just silently walked around by Daryl’s side whilst he and Oscar did the killing. He managed to get him to open up a bit after talking about his own mother’s death, killing herself in her own bed by accident after falling asleep holding a lit cigarette. He shook his head at the memory, and turned his attention back to Glenn and his upset sister.

“That’s good.” Glenn said, mostly paying attention to Parker as she stabbed a female walker through the eye. “She’s pissed.”

“When ain’t she pissed?” Daryl grunted.

“Not around you.” Glenn pointed out, looking over at him. “Not anymore, at least.” Daryl didn’t say anything, just watched her from afar. “Maggie and I are leaving in a few minutes. I wanted to go down and talk to her but...I think she’s annoyed I’m going on another run without her.”

“Go with her.” Daryl spoke up suddenly, and Glenn frowned.

“Parker? On a run? She hasn’t been on one in weeks, not since we were on the road.”

“She needs to get out of this place.” Daryl said. “She’s tense. Too worked up. She feels trapped. So do I.” Glenn looked from Parker to Daryl before shaking his head.

“How do you even know that?” He asked. Daryl shrugged.

“I know her.”

“You think I don’t?” Glenn scoffed.

“Do you know what happened to her in that cabin in the woods?” Daryl bit back. Glenn’s eyes widened slightly.

“No. Did she say something to you?” Daryl paused, blinking a few times before sighing.

“Nah. But at least we have somethin’ in common.” Daryl paused before taking the poncho from his shoulder and tossing it to Glenn. “Give it to her. She wanted it.” He then started to walk back up to the prison, but Glenn called out to him before he walk too far away.

“You really think she needs to get out of here?” Daryl paused, and without looking his shoulder, he replied with the most honest answer he could give him.

“If she stays in once place for too long, she’ll go insane.” Glenn watched him walk off, and held the poncho to his chest before finally plucking up the courage to walk across the yard, through the gate, and up to Parker.

“Hey.” He called out once he was close enough, coming up to her just as she stabbed another walker through the head with a grunt, watching it fall to the ground with a hard thud. She turned to her brother, and it hit him how hard she was actually working out here. She had sweat glistening on her arms, face and neck, and she looked tired, except only mentally, not physically. She was drained, they all were, but she had adrenaline rushing through her and Glenn knew that may come to his advantage out there. “I’m going to head out on that run.”

“Okay.” Parker said, turning her attention back to the fence and patrolling it. Glenn jogged over to her to try and keep up, holding the poncho out to her.

“Daryl told me to give you this.” Parker stopped and looked at it, remembering their conversation from that morning. She felt her lips twist into a small smile and she looked at her brother before taking it, pulling it over her head and enjoying how the soft material felt against her skin. Glenn noticed her physically calm down and he grinned. “And, I wanted to ask if you’d come with me instead of Maggie.”

Parker’s eyes widened. “What? Why?”

“You seem...trapped in here.” He said, using Daryl’s words. “I thought maybe it would be good for you to get out for a few hours. We can spend some time together?”

“This isn’t like our old shopping trips, Glenn.” Parker sighed.

“I know.” He said sadly. “I know that’s not going to happen again. But...it can be like old times, can’t it? Even just for a little bit? When it was just you and me out there, on the road. Even with everything going wrong...that was something that always felt right.”

Parker smiled at him. “Yeah, it did.” She looked out at the fence, watching some walkers in the woods wandering around blindly. She then felt herself nodding. “Okay. I’ll go.” Glenn grinned and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

“Good. I mean, it was either you or Daryl.”

“As if you’d spend a car ride alone with Daryl.” Parker scoffed and Glenn just shrugged.

“Fair point.” The two made their way over to the yard where the cars were parked, and they both spotted Maggie loading some weapons and supplies into the back of Carol’s old Cherokee. “Hey, Mags?” Glenn called out, and jogged over to her to quickly explain the situation. As the two talked, Parker felt a presence behind her, and turned to see Daryl leaning against his bike.

“Looks good on you.” He said, nodding at the poncho. Parker smirked and ran her hand over the hem of the orange and black fabric.

“Told you so.” She teased and Daryl snorted. She paused before walking over to him and leant against the bike as well. “You held my hand today.” She said quietly, making Daryl look down at her.

“I did.”

“I thought you didn’t want to. So...what changed your mind?” She asked.

“Fed up of you whinin’ if i didn’t.” He said, trying to put on a tough persona.

Parker scoffed. “Shut up. I don’t whine.”

“You do.”

“Do not.” She nudged her shoulder against his and he gave her a small smile. The two watched Maggie and Glenn share a goodbye kiss, and Parker smiled. She was still overly happy for the two of them, finding a love like that so quickly. She glanced at Daryl, wondering if she could ever feel true love for him. Or if she already had. She shook her head, not wanting to go there right now, and stood up, brushing herself down. “I guess I’ll see you later?” She said, almost with uncertainty. Daryl nodded.

“You will.” He said. The two stared at each other for a while, before Parker leaned down and kissed him, cupping his face with her hands. If Glenn and Maggie could kiss goodbye, then so could they. Daryl sighed into her mouth and almost groaned when she pulled away, and watched with sad eyes as she stepped away from him.

“Later, gator.” She winked, making him snort, and jogged over to the Cherokee, where she quickly hugged Maggie goodbye and hopped into the passenger seat whilst her brother started the engine. Daryl watched Glenn turn the car around, patiently waiting for Maggie to open the main gate, before accelerating down the path and out of the prison completely, disappearing down the dirt track leading onto the main road. Maggie quickly shut the gate and then walked back up to where Daryl was, who had a grumpy look on his face.

“Don’t look so down.” She said with a big smile. “She’ll be back before you know it.” She walked back inside, leaving Daryl alone in the courtyard, hoping that she was right. But most of all, he hoped he hadn’t just made a terrible mistake.

***

“So, when are you gonna propose?”

“I am not going to propose! Jesus, Park, we barely know each other!”

“Oh come on! Cut the bullshit, you know her like the back of your hand!”

“I’m not marrying her.” Glenn said, rubbing the back of his neck as he drove down the deserted road. Parker scoffed, resting her feet against the dashboard.

“Liar. You’ve thought about it.”

“No I haven’t.” Parker looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “Okay, maybe once or twice.”

“I knew it.” Parker beamed in delight. “You looove her.” She sang and Glenn groaned.

“God you’re annoying.” He grumbled.

“Yet you invited me to come with you. You only have yourself to blame, little brother.”

“Okay, seriously?! For the last time, I am two minutes younger than you!” Glenn exclaimed, only for Parker to sit up in her seat and point out the window.

“Over there! That’s it, right?” She was pointing towards a large supermarket with red walls and an illegible, red and white sign that had long since rotted down to nothing.

“Yep, that’s it.” Glenn breathed out, looking down at the map beside him and realising they were in the centre of the circle he had marked. He parked the car next to an abandoned SUV and jumped out, grabbing his gun and surveying the area. His sister jumped out as well, and quickly scoped out their surroundings, only to see nothing by grassy forest on one side, and a dead silent street on the other. There was nothing. No walkers, no people. Just her and Glenn.

“It’s clear outside.” She called out to her twin, and he nodded in relief. He opened the back door and pulled out a backpack, a torch and a bolt cutter, before slamming it shut and heading to the main door. Parker looked around her, feeling the sun on her skin, and a small breeze rolling across them, and smiled. “It’s a beautiful day.” She said quietly, making Glenn pause mid step and take a look as well. He smiled, then looked at his sister. She was wearing the poncho still, even in the heat, but she looked happy in it. Happier than she had looked in a while.

“You okay?” He asked, and she nodded without much hesitation.

“I think I am.” She replied. “Are you?”

“I am now we’re out here.” He said, sighing slightly. “It was getting cramped at the prison. It’s nice sometimes to just...get out into the real world again.”

“It doesn’t feel real.” Parker said, holding her gun steady as Glenn grabbed the bolt cutters. He sagged his shoulders slightly.

“I know.” He then cut through the chains that were wrapped around the handles of the supermarket door, and yanked it open, only for the two to duck in fright as some birds flew out from inside. Parker snorted and Glenn couldn’t help but join in for a moment, just enjoying the sound of the other’s laughter, before Glenn ventured inside with his torch. Parker kept watch just outside the door, but shone her own torch through the door, only to spot something in the dark and giggle.

“Hey Glenn?” She called out to him.

“Yeah?” His voice was already in the distance.

“Grab that duck.” A few seconds passed before Glenn stuck his head out of the door with a frown.

“What?”

“Get that duck!” Parker nodded over his shoulder until he saw the little toy duck on one of the front shelves. He laughed, but walked over to it and picked it up.

“Are you serious? You’re too old for toys.” He teased, making her roll her eyes.

“Not for me, dumbass. A kid could use some stuffed animals growing up in a prison.” Glenn nodded and threw the toy into a nearby basket and picking it up.

“You okay out there? You wanna come inside?” He asked, but Parker shook her head.

“No, it looks hotter in there and I’m already drowning in this poncho.”

“Gross.” Glenn crumpled his face up, but once again disappeared down one of the isles. Parker then moved to the side of the door and leaned up against the brick wall, shielding her body from the direct sunlight and closing her eyes for a brief moment. She hadn’t felt at peace like this for a long time. There was no one around, no crying baby, no blood, no stress. Just her and her brother. Like old times. She opened her eyes again, smiling this time, and kept a close eye on the road ahead of her, looking both ways every few seconds. Just checking to make sure there was no one coming down the road in either directions. Then she saw something glinting in the sun out of the corner of her eye, lying on the pavement, and she frowned at it.

It was a baseball bat, a big one too. But as her feet started to move, making her body come closer to it, she realised the glinting was the barbed wire wrapped around it. It was pure, clean, metal, and it was one of the most beautiful weapons she had ever seen. She studied it for a second, crouching in front of it and holding it in her hands carefully. It was smooth and strong, and her first instinct was to take it with her. Parker had no idea what had drawn her to it, she put it down to curiosity, but there was no way she was leaving it behind. She was about to get back to her feet and walk over to the store, about to start bragging to Glenn about how cool her new toy was, but then she heard something rustle in the bushes ahead of her and she froze. Her eyes slowly scanned her surroundings, finding nothing at first, but after looking directly into the bushes, she saw a pair of eyes staring back at her. She felt her throat close up in fear, as something ran through her body, shaking her to the core. This weapon wasn’t hers to take. She slowly put it back down and stood up, backing away towards the shop as quietly as she could, never taking her eyes off of the bushes, before something made a loud bang from inside the store and scared the living daylights out of her.

“Shit! Sorry! I tripped!” Glenn yelled out from inside, and Parker groaned before looking back at the bushes, only to see nothing looking back at her. She frowned, and blinked a couple of times, just in case her mind had been playing tricks on her, but then she looked at the ground where the bat had been only to discover it was no longer there. Her blood ran cold.

“Hey, Park? You alright?” She whipped around to see her brother carrying a full basket full of baby supplies, among with a few extra supplies spilling out of his backpack. She nodded after realising she hadn’t said anything in reply, and Glenn simply raised an eyebrow. “You sure? You look spooked? Was it a walker?”

“No. No it was nothing, just thinking to myself.” She said, putting on a smile and walking over to her brother. “What you got there?”

“Well. we hit the powder formula jackpot!” Glenn beamed, standing beside her and showing her the basket. “I also got beans, batteries, cocktail wieners, many mustard's.”

“Sweet. Good job, kid.” Parker grinned, and Glenn grinned right back.

“It’s a straight shot back to the prison from here.” He said. “Probably make it in time for dinner.”

“Here’s hoping.” Parker said, helping him load the heavy backpack into the car. “Let’s go home before Maggie starts worrying.”

“And where is it y’all good people are callin’ home?” Parker dropped the bag instantly, grabbing her gun and pointing it directly at the source of the voice. It was coming from behind one of the cars a few yards away and she aimed, ready to fire, before she realised who it was.

“Merle?” Glenn breathed. He had rushed to his sister’s side in seconds, also drawing his gun on the redneck as he slowly approached them, gun raised and a big, shocked smile on his face. Parker would have almost been glad to see a familiar face, if it wasn’t for the fact Merle Dixon was covered in blood and instead of his right hand there was a large, metal spike instead. She gulped, but kept her guard up as Merle started to laugh and placed his hand gun on the ground.

“Wow!” He breathed out, looking between the two of them. “If it ain’t goddamn Tweedledum and Tweedledee!” He chortled. “Still can’t get over how much y’all look alike!”

“You made it.” Glenn said bluntly, ignoring the man’s comments.

“Can you tell me…” Merle started to say, looking from Parker to Glenn and back again. “Is my brother alive? Huh?”

“Yeah.” Parker said after a pause. “He’s alive.”

“Will you take me to ‘em?” Merle asked, stepping closer to her. Glenn instinctively followed Merle’s movements with his gun. “And I’ll call it even on everythin’ that happened up there in Atlanta. No hard feelins’.” Neither of the twins said anything, they just kept their weapons up. As much as Parker knew Daryl wanted to see his brother again, even if he never admitted it, having up in the prison? Their home? No. Not around Carl and the baby or Beth...they hadn’t seen Merle in over a year, there was no way he was the same person he was at Atlanta. But whether he was better or worse wasn’t a risk she was about to take.

Parker realised Glenn had been staring at Merle’s makeshift hand spike since he had started talking, and Merle noticed too as he started to laugh loudly. “Oh yeah, you like that?” He said, waving the spike around. “Well, uh, I found myself a medical supply warehouse. Fixed it up myself. Pretty cool, huh?”

“We’ll tell Daryl you’re here.” Glenn said. “And he’ll come out to meet you.”

“Hold on! Just hold up.” Merle took a step closer and Glenn glared at him.

“Whoa, whoa!” He warned.

“Hey, the fact that we found each other is a miracle!” Merle exclaimed. “Come on. You can trust me.”

“You need to trust us, first.” Parker ordered, glaring at him herself. “Daryl will meet you here and talk to you. Then maybe you can come back with us, but you have to stay here. You got that?” Merle’s eyes glanced to her and he slowly smirked.

“Did he ever tell you? My little brother.” He asked and she frowned.

“Tell me what?” She asked impatiently.

“He was always watchin’ you. You notice that?” Merle said with an unsettling grin on his lips. Parker felt her body go still. “Oh yeah. Every night, he’d sit outside that tent and keep an eye on ya. Sleepin’. Eatin’. Talkin’.” He chuckled. “When you were washin’ in that creek.”

“That’s enough!” Glenn exclaimed.

“Did he ever get the balls to tell you he wanted you? Tell you how he felt?” Merle taunted, taking a few more brave steps towards Parker who was now as stiff as a board. Her eyes wide and nervous, hanging onto every word he was saying. Daryl wasn’t like that...he wasn’t. But Merle was, he always had been. “He probably hasn’t. He ain’t got no damn balls in the first place.” Merle grinned. “But I do.”

“I said that’s enough!” Glenn pushed himself between Parker and Merle, only for the bigger man to grab Glenn’s hand and smash the butt of his gun up into his nose, causing him to stumble to the ground. Merle grabbed Parker and threw her own gun to the side as she watched her brother collapse, before pulling her back into his chest and wrapping his right arm around her shoulders, holding the spike to her neck and watching as Glenn tried to stand back up. His nose was bleeding profusely and he was obviously in a lot of pain, but seeing his sister so helpless, stuck in Merle’s dirty, blood soaked arms, was enough for him to ignore all of the physical pain.

“Hey, hey! Hold up buddy!” Merle warned as Glenn grabbed his gun again and pointed it directly between Merle’s eyes.

“Let go of her! LET GO OF HER!” Glenn shouted.

Merle gripped onto Parker even tighter than before, and Glenn gasped out air desperately in pure frustration. There was nothing he could do. “Put that gun in the car right now, put that gun in the car, son.” He ordered, raising the spike higher and closer to Parker’s neck. Glenn saw her gulp in fear and he felt like screaming, but he did as Merle asked and threw the gun into the open car door before raising his hands in surrender. “There you go.” Merle nodded. “Now we’re gonna go for a little drive.”

“We’re not going back to our camp.” Glenn said as calmly as he could. Merle shook his head in agreement.

“No, we’re goin’ somewhere else.” He said, and a sick, twisted smile etched onto his face, and it made Glenn’s stomach churn. Merle then stepped forward and nodded at the car. “Get in the car, Glenn!” He barked out, making both of the Rhee’s jump. “You’re drivin’!” At first, Glenn didn’t move, but then Merle pressed the side of the blade into Parker’s neck and she whimpered out in pain as it slowly cut into her pale skin.

“Don’t!” Glenn begged, but Merle just gave him a hard look.

“Don’t make me cut my brother’s pretty little girl up!" Merle warned as he continued to step towards the car as Glenn backed himself up against it. "I don't think neither of us would want that."

“It’s okay.” Parker whispered out against Merle’s grip, looking into her brother’s scared eyes. “It’s okay.” Glenn glared at Merle but shook his head and got into the driver's seat as Merle shoved Parker into the back and got in with her, slamming the door and instantly pointing his gun at her head as soon as he was settled into the seat.

“Come on now, don’t wanna keep me waitin’.” He said, smirking at Parker who gripped the door handle with dear life. Glenn started the car and pulled out of the supermarket, his entire body shaking with rage.

“Turn left.” Merle said calmly as Glenn got to the edge of the small parking lot attached to the supermarket, and he did as he was told, swinging the car a hard left and speeding down the road. “You’ll get to a T junction.” Merle continued to say. “You take a right, then another right, and then keep goin’ down the stretch of road until you hit the wall.”

“The wall?” Glenn spat, seeing the T Junction in the distance.

“Yep. The place we’re going is guarded to all hell. Ain’t nobody gettin’ in or out.” Merle swung his head around to look at Parker and chuckled at her disgusted expression. “Don’t look at me like that, little darlin’. Ain’t I a sight for sore eyes?”

“I’d say you’re the complete opposite.” Parker growled and Merle howled with laughter.

“Now I remember how feisty you are!” He grinned, sitting back in his seat but never moving the gun from Parker’s direction. “Always so eager to make my brother look over at you with your yellin’ and cryin’. It worked.”

“I didn’t do that for Daryl.” Parker exclaimed. “I did that because my friends were dying! My family were dying!”

“Oh hush. Take a right, Chinaman.” Merle said, looking at the T Junction outside the window and patting Glenn on the shoulder with his spiked hand, making both of the twins flinch. Glenn rolled his eyes but continued to follow his orders. “Everyone’s family died. You ain’t special.” Merle snorted. “Well, maybe you are to my brother.”

“Can we just leave him out of this?” Parker asked, looking away from Merle, no longer being able to look him in the eye. His eyes were exactly like Daryl’s, clear, blue, and sparkling, and it was starting to piss her off.

“Aw, honey, you miss ‘em that much? Damn, you got it bad for my little brother, ain’t ya?”

“I said stop.” Parker hissed through gritted teeth, her knuckles beginning to turn white as she was gripping the door so hard.

“He ever get the guts to slip it in? He always thought about it.” Merle chuckled wickedly, and Glenn held on harder to the steering wheel in disgust. He wanted to swerve the car right off the road and into a tree instead of hearing the things Merle was saying.

“You clearly don’t know Daryl well enough because he isn’t like that.” Parker spat.

“Oh my!” Merle howled again. “You think you know my own brother better than me? Me?! Well, sweet cheeks, that’s real funny, because if I remember correctly, he’s my blood. My kin. You’re just a piece of ass to him and me!”

“Hey! Cut that out!” Glenn shouted. Merle raised his free hand in surrender.

“I’m sorry, Glenn. But your sister needs to realise the truth.” Merle then scooted over to Parker and gave her a sad look. “You see, my brother is the most loyal sum’bitch I know. And I bet you know that too.” Parker glared at him, but found herself hanging onto every word. “So, I think it’s pretty obvious that he’d pick me over you any day.”

“Don’t be so sure.” She hissed. Merle grinned.

“He ain’t comin’ to rescue you. Either of you. You know that, right?”

“He’s better than you think. Braver.” Parker said with her head held high, proudly wanting to stand up for Daryl. Merle snorted.

“Brave? Hell no. He’s a pussy. Puts his feelin’s first. But loyalty to his own blood? That’s somethin’ he can’t ignore. You surely know what that’s like?” Parker couldn’t help but glance up at Glenn, who was already looking at her through the rear view mirror.

“Yeah.” She said. “I do.”

“Well.” He moved back onto his seat and leaned against the leather. “Let’s see if he really is your knight in shinin’ armor.” As the car kept moving down the road, Parker kept thinking Merle’s words over and over again in her head. She was hoping and praying that he was wrong, that Daryl wasn’t like how he said he was. But most of all, she was hoping he was loyal. But not to Merle, to her.


	23. Brothers and Sisters

We can tend to that wound for you. Give you some food and water and send you on your way.” Rick told the stranger as he, Hershel and Daryl wandered back into the recreation room. She was sat on one of the tables, holding onto her shot leg, and glaring at all three of them individually. Daryl didn’t know if he could trust her; she had just wandered up to the fence holding a basket of baby things, and Rick dragged her in. How did she now where they were? How did she even find this place? “But,” Rick continued, standing in front of her with the two other men flanking him, “you’re gonna have to tell us how you found us. And why you were carrying formula.”

“The supplies were dropped by a young Asian guy.” The woman said. “With a pretty girl. Looked just like him.”

“What happened?” Rick asked as both Hershel and Daryl looked at each other in shock. Did she mean Parker and Glenn?

“Were they attacked?” Hershel asked.

“They were taken.” She replied.

“By who?” Daryl demanded, stepping up to her and holding his crossbow closely to his chest.

“By the same son of a bitch who shot me.” The woman said in disgust. Daryl started pacing about in anger.

“Hey, these are our people.” Rick said, crouching in front of her. “You tell us what happened now!” He grabbed her leg and put pressure on her wound, only for her to yelp and jump away from him, holding a finger up in rage. Daryl aimed his crossbow at her without a moment’s hesitation, waiting for her to strike one of them.

“Don’t you EVER touch me again!” The woman exclaimed, staring right into Rick’s eyes.

“You’d better start talkin’.” Daryl growled, looking at her over the bow. The woman’s eyes widened. “You’re gonna have a much bigger problem than a gunshot wound.” She glared at him, then at Rick, and then back to Daryl.

“Find them yourself.” She hissed. Daryl growled and lunged for her, but Rick pushed him back, shaking his head.

“Daryl, you need to calm down.” Hershel said but he didn’t listen.

“Man, if she don’t tell us where they are I swear I’ll shoot her right between her eyes!” He shouted, attracting the attention of the others in the cell block.

“Hershel’s right!” Rick called out over the top of him. “We need to find out where they are first before we go out there guns a blazing.” Daryl stared at him, and Rick just put a hand on his shoulder. “I want to find them too.”

Daryl paused but then scoffed and moved away, running a hand over his face and beginning to pace up and down the floor again. Rick slowly walked up to the woman, calmly this time, and gave her a nod.

“You came here for a reason.” He said gently, not wanting to cause another scrap. For a while, she didn’t say anything, she just looked away as if she were embarrassed. Or reluctant to speak. But eventually, she opened her mouth again.

“There’s a town.” She said. “Woodbury.” That caught even Daryl’s attention, and he stopped pacing to look over at her. “About seventy-five survivors. I think they were taken there.”

“A whole town?” Rick asked, wondering if it was too good to be true.

“It’s run by this guy who calls himself The Governor.” The woman said. “Pretty boy, charming. Jim Jones type.”

“He got muscle?” Daryl asked, and the woman looked his way.

“Paramilitary wannabes.” She replied. “They have armed sentries on every wall.”

“You know a way in?” Rick asked, cocking his head to the side. The woman nodded.

“The place is secure from walkers, but we could slip out way through.” No one said anything, but eventually Rick chuckled slightly. All of this seemed way too easy.

“How’d you know how to get here?” He asked.

“They mentioned a prison, said which direction it was in, said it was a straight shot.” The woman replied. Rick paused, and then pointed towards Hershel.

“This is Hershel.” He said. “He’s like a father to the two that were taken. He’ll take care of that.” He nodded at her wound before walking back towards the cell block with Daryl at his side. After getting inside, the others all crowded around them. “She said there’s a place, Woodbury, some guy took Glenn and Parker there.”

“What?” Maggie exclaimed, jumping up from where she was sat at the foot of the stairs. Beth was already on her heels with the baby in her arms in seconds. “Someone took them?!”

“We need to go out there and find them.” Rick said, trying to reassure her. “But first, we need her healed.” They all turned to look at the woman as Hershel started to lie her on the floor and inspect her gunshot. “She can show us where this town is, and we can sneak in and get them out.”

“How do you know she’s telling the truth?” Carol asked, speaking for the first time since Daryl had found her in the tombs. He had been so relieved to find her down there, even if she was dehydrated and half dead. But she was alive, and he knew Parker would be over the moon to see her safe. His chest twinged at the thought of her. How could he have been so stupid to let her go? To let her brother go? He should have gone on that run himself, just like last time. He had no trouble on his own, he wouldn’t have let himself get captured. He shook his head and went upstairs to his cell block as Rick relayed the plan to the rest of their group. He threw his crossbow onto the bed as soon as he stepped inside and started grabbing weapons and throwing them into a bag. Knives, extra ammo, a couple of handguns, even a few smoke bombs they had found after the farm. He was taking everything he had.

“Daryl?” In his mad rush, Daryl spun around with a grunt, only to see Carl standing in the doorway of the cell. He looked upset.

“What do you want, kid?” He asked with a sigh, zipping the bag up and throwing it over his right shoulder, leaving his left one empty so his crossbow could sit there.

“I’m scared.” He said quietly, and Daryl rolled his eyes.

“Well, good thing you ain’t comin’ with me.”

“It’s not that.” Carl said a little louder, his tone getting slightly agitated. “I’m scared for Parker.” Daryl paused, and looked at Carl’s face. He was right, he did look scared. He looked terrified. “She’s saved me so many times because I always got into danger and now...now she’s in danger. I just...I wish I was there, you know? With her and Glenn. Maybe I could have done something to help.” Carl looked down in shame, and Daryl felt his heart go out to the kid. Parker was both a sister to him and a mother in many ways. She had always had Carl’s back since day one, and the kid had been through so much with her already. It must have killed him to know she was in harm’s way. Daryl got into a crouch and whistled for Carl to look at him.

“I’ll get her back. I’m goin’ out there and bringing the two of them home. Where they’ll be safe.” He said. Carl shook his head.

“How do you know that?”

“Because I ain’t comin’ back till I do.” Daryl said. “I swear.” Carl bit his lip as tears began to fill his eyes, and Daryl flinched as he wrapped his arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. Daryl awkwardly stiffened, but eventually hugged the kid back, patting his back and standing up once he let go. “Come on. You gotta be strong, now. Ain’t no time for cryin’.”

“Okay.” Carl nodded, wiping his eyes and standing up straight. Daryl nodded at him and then picked up his crossbow before leading the boy back down the stairs. Maggie was already in hysterics, holding onto Carol and demanding Rick to let her come with them.

“We need as many people here as we can!” He argued as gently as he could, wanting her to calm down and see reason. “I know you want to see them safe but Maggie, I swear to you, we can get them back.”

“They should never have gone out there alone.” She whimpered, and Carol’s arms wrapped around her tighter. “What if they’re already-”

“Don’t even say it.” Daryl said bluntly, coming up behind her. “She’ll be just fine. Glenn too. You hear me?” Maggie hesitated, but she saw the determination in his eyes. Everyone could. Daryl was also hurting, he just refused to show it. They all knew he would do anything to make sure Parker was safe, Glenn too. She could trust him above everyone else to bring her boyfriend and his sister back safely. Maggie sighed with a shaky breath but nodded at him.

“Be safe.” She said, and then wandered quietly into her and Glenn’s cell, shutting the door, and lying on the bed, shutting herself away. All of them turned around suddenly at the sound of a different cell door opening, and Oscar walked out with a hammer in hand and Axel by his side.

“I heard what happened. You guys are leaving?” He asked. Rick nodded.

“Once she’s stitched up, she’s going to take us to this Woodbury.”

“How do you know if we can even trust her?” Oscar asked and Beth scoffed at him.

“This is Parker and Glenn!” She said with a frown. “Why are we even debatin’?”

“We ain’t.” Daryl said harshly. “I’m goin’ after ‘em.”

“Well, this place sounds pretty secure. You can’t go alone.” Rick pointed out.

“I’ll go.” Beth said.

“Me too.” Axel said.

“I’m in.” Oscar nodded, after a brief look between him and his close friend. Rick slowly looked between all of them, weighing up his options. Then he turned to Daryl.

“Get everything we have loaded into the car.” He said. “We don’t know what we’re going to be up against.” Daryl nodded and started heading out of the cell block, walking past Hershel and the woman who was already getting stitched up. He heard the others starting to grab guns and ammo and melee weapons as they followed him, and he jogged out into the sunlight. He headed towards to the closest car, the trusty green toyota, and unlocked the trunk of the car.

“I got tear gas, flash bangs, you never know what you’re gonna need.” Daryl said as Oscar came up behind him and loaded some AK’s into the back along with the bags. Once that was loaded, Daryl turned to see Carl hurrying over to him with a few more bags filled with ammo and some supplies and he thanked him before loading everything into the back. “Hey, don’t worry about your old man.” He said, looking down at Carl. “I’m gonna keep my eye on him.”

Carl nodded, and as he started to walk away, Daryl grabbed his old leather jacket with the wings on the back from the trunk of the car, and threw it over his shoulders. It was like his lucky charm, and he was gonna need it for this.

As Rick came out and took Carl to one side, and as Beth helped the woman out of the prison doors towards the car, Daryl walked up to Carol who was standing to the side by herself. She was carrying the baby in her arms, cradling her and cooing at her. And Daryl smiled.

“Stay safe.” He said, walking up to her.

“Nine lives, remember?” She smirked, and Daryl nodded before tickling the little girl’s chin in her arms, then walked back to the car. He got into the passenger seat, Oscar offering to sit beside the woman in the back, and waited patiently for Rick to get in too.

“Bring them back.” Hershel said and Rick nodded, before getting in and starting the engine. As he started to pull off towards the main gate, Daryl looked in the wing mirror to see Maggie standing in the small, fenced off walkway leading into the cell block. She stared at them as they disappeared out of the prison yard, and even from far away Daryl could see she was crying. He looked away, and rested his arm on the rolled down window. He mentally made a promise to her, right there and then, that no matter what happened, or where they were, that he would always bring Glenn safely back to her.

He also made a promise to himself. He would always bring Parker safely back to him.

***

Glenn’s cries of pain and Merle’s yelling had finally stopped, but Parker was still fuming with anger. She couldn’t move, which was the worst part. She couldn’t walk over to the wall separating her from her brother and ask if he was okay. If he was alive. Her entire body was shaking, and she had to try to keep her breathing steady as the minutes ticked by and the silence started to get to her. She was too afraid to call out, in case Merle was on the other side, or someone was listening in. Glenn didn’t seem to be making any noise on the other side. Maybe he had passed out? Maybe Merle had knocked him unconscious? Maybe he had…

She looked straight ahead of her and shook her head. No. She wasn’t going to think like that. Her brother was strong, and so was she. They were both going to make it. She just knew it.  
A bolt clicked in the door ahead of her and she looked up, her eyes going wide as someone she didn’t recognise walked into the room. He was tall, very tall, with dark brown hair neatly parted to the side and fresh, clean clothes that looked formal and well fitting. Where the hell had he come from?

He closed the door behind him and slowly walked over to the table she was sat at. Parker held her breath, and watched his every move. But she couldn’t help but struggle slightly as he pulled a large knife from his belt, holding it up against the dim light of the lamp above his head.

It was like he was taunting her. Trying to scare her. She wasn’t going to let that happen.  
Without saying a single word, the man slowly made his way over to her, before standing right behind her and reaching down. Parker stiffened as he took her hands and used the knife to cut away the duck tape Merle had put around her wrists when he first brought her here. She brought her hands up to her lap and rubbed at her sore wrists as the man walked back around her so he was standing on the other side of the table, just in front of another wooden chair that had been placed there before Parker was in the room. The man pulled the chair out, paused, and then looked at her.

“May I?” He asked. Parker frowned at him slightly, wanting to know what his deal was, but then licked her lips and nodded once. “Thank you.” He said politely, and took a seat. A few seconds ticked by before the man spoke again. “We’ll take you back to your people.” He said. “Explain this was all just a big misunderstanding.”

“A misunderstanding?” Parker scoffed. “You tied me and my brother up and beat him. I’d say your intentions were pretty clear.” The man paused but then started to chuckle.

“I apologise for Merle’s behaviour.” He said, leaning forward and resting his arms on the table. “He’s a brute. Always has been, since the day I met him. But I’m sure you already knew that. Now, like I was saying. We can take you home. Just tell us where your people are, and we’ll drive you there.”

Parker kept her mouth shut, and slowly folded her arms over her chest in defiance. “I want to talk to Glenn.”

“I can’t allow that.” The man shrugged. “Your people are dangerous. Handcuffed my man to a roof, forced him to amputate his own hand.”

“Merle is dangerous.” Parker said. “He got himself into that mess. We were trying to protect our group.”

“You just tell us where they are and we’ll bring them here.” The man said, leaning back into the chair. Parker went quiet again, and he cocked his head to the side. “You’ll be safe, I promise.”

She didn’t look away.

“No? Fine. Let’s try something else.” The man paused. “Stand up, please.” Parker raised an eyebrow at him. The man didn’t like that, she could tell, and he leaned forward once again, giving her a cold look. “Stand up.” He ordered. Parker bit her tongue but pushed the chair back, standing up straight and uncrossing her arms. The two never looked away from each other. “Take off your shirt.” The man said, nodding at her old baseball tee.

“No.” Parker said instantly. Her mind flashed back to the cabin for a second, but she refused to let that memory haunt her. She needed to be strong now, she couldn’t buckle under pressure.

“Take off your shirt,” the man said, smiling at her now, “or I’ll bring Glenn’s hand in here.” Parker’s eyes widened in fear, and he knew he had her then. She let out a shaky breath, before glancing at the wall where he brother was hopefully still on the other side, and then looked back down at the man. She reached down to the hem of the shirt and starting pulling it up, hating the way his eyes were fixed on her now bare stomach and chest, before yanking it over her head and throwing it harshly to the ground. Silence.

The man then shrugged and smiled at her. “Go on.” He nodded, and Parker started to shake. The images of Scotty were flashing through her mind, tying her up and throwing her on the bed. Telling her to get on her knees for him. It was happening all over again. But if this didn’t happen...they’d hurt her brother. Again. Parker swallowed but reached behind her and with shaking fingers, unhooked her bra. She tossed it the side once it was off her shoulders and quickly covered up her chest with her hands. The man stared at her for a long time before getting to his feet and reaching for his gun belt. He took it off slowly, as if wanting to put her on edge, and once it was laying on the chair beside him, he slowly walked up to her, standing at her side.

Parker had to suppress a sob as he reached up and tangle some fingers in her hair, just staring at her with wide eyes and an evil smirk. This was her torture...Glenn’s was being beaten...her’s was being used.

The man’s hand suddenly grabbed the back of Parker’s neck and he grunted loudly as he slammed her face against the table, pressing her body on the cold metal and leaning over her. She yelped out in pain and lay there gasping as he breathed heavily over her neck.  
“So you gonna talk?” He asked, his voice still oddly calm, and she let out grunts as his hand ran over her head, his other hand pressing down on the small of her back.

“Go to hell!” She spat. “Do whatever you’re gonna do. I’m not saying shit!” The man didn’t say anything, just ran his hand through her hair, down her spine, and then moved away, letting her go. She lay there in shock as she saw him walk back over to the chair he had been sitting in, and let a tear roll down her cheek.

***

Glenn grabbed the first weapon he could find when the door to the room he was locked in opened. He growled and raised the piece of wood above his head the second he saw Merle saunter in, but the man held his good hand up and shook his head.

“Uh uh!” He warned, and stepped to the side just as two more men walked in, one holding onto his sister’s bare shoulder. Glenn’s eyes widened and he lunged for the taller man but Merle once again shook his head. The third man in the room, a Latino man with an AK, held up his gun and told him to stay back. Glenn let go of the weapon at the sight of Parker’s tear stained face, and the cogs in his brain started to click. She was naked from the waist up, her hands and arms covering herself, but she was shaking with a fear he had never seen before. She was terrified.

“We’re through with games.” The tallest man said, holding onto Parker’s shoulder for a little longer before pulling out a small gun and holding it up to the light. “Now one of you is going to give up your camp.” At first, neither of the twins said anything, they just stared at each other helplessly. Then the man pointed his gun towards Parker’s head, but only for a second, as he moved forward and pointed the gun directly between Glenn’s eyes, making him stiffen.  
“THE PRISON!” Parker yelled, and every man in the room turned to her, waiting to see what happened next. The man with the AK pointed it at her as she stepped forward, whilst Merle’s arm moved in front of her, not wanting her to get any closer to her brother.

“The one near Nunez?” Merle asked.

“That place is overrun.” The tall man with the gun pointed at Glenn said.

“We took it.” Parker said helplessly, mentally apologising to everyone back home for what she had done. Glenn’s eyes started to tear up, and Parker let out a quiet sob in return.

“How many are you?” The man asked, never taking the gun away from Glenn’s head.

“Ten.” She replied. “We have ten now.” Both of the twins felt a rush of horror run down their spine at the realisation that the baby was now in danger.

“Ten people, cleared that whole prison of biters?” The man frowned, looking between Parker and Glenn, who were both shaking in fear. For a moment, Parker wondered if he was actually going to shoot Glenn in the head, but he just paused, before moving the gun away and walking towards the door. He stopped, however, and to Glenn’s disgust, ran a gentle finger over Parker’s cheek as she sobbed. “Hey, hey sshh.” He whispered, getting close to her. She flinched, but couldn’t move away as the Latino still had his gun trained on her. “It’s alright.” Parker pleaded with Glenn through her sad, tear filled eyes as the man cradled her head and tried to pull her body into his, but she started to squirm under his touch and moved away. He grabbed her harder though, and pulled her into him so he could kiss her forehead.  
He then looked back at Glenn, who was seething with rage, and just smiled. He then shoved Parker roughly towards Glenn who instantly pulled her into his arms and refusing to let go as the men slowly started to file out of the room.

Once the door was closed, and the two were alone, Parker let out the most heartbreaking sobs Glenn had ever heard. He pulled her close and pushed his face into her hair, rubbing a hand gently over her shoulder to try and calm her down, except he was crying himself. Both of them were complete wrecks at this point after what they had both endured.

“I’m so sorry.” Parker sobbed into her brother’s shirt, gripping onto him as hard as she could; afraid to let go in case they were separated again.

“Don’t say that.” He whispered back. “Don’t ever be sorry for that.”

“They’re all gonna die because of me.” She whimpered. “Rick, Carl, the baby...oh my god.” She pulled away, still covering her chest and let out a small cry at the realisation of her actions. Glenn shook his head and quickly pulled his shirt off, handing it to her and turning his head to the side.

“Put this on.” He said softly, and she nodded, tears still falling freely, but yanked the big, over sized shirt on. Once she was decent, Glenn looked at her and pulled her into a hug again. “This isn’t your fault, P.” He whispered, but she just kept on sobbing.

“What are they going to do to them?” She breathed out. “What are they going to do to Maggie? Oh my god...what are they going to do to Daryl?!” Glenn bit his lip, wishing there was something he could say to make it better. But he was thinking about his girlfriend, and her sister, and Hershel and his friends. Everyone. How did they get into this mess?

“We won’t let them hurt any of them.” He said with a small spark of determination. He pulled away from his sister and wiped away as many tears as he could as she tried to steady her breathing. “We’ll find a way out of here, and we’ll get home. Rick and the others are coming, I know they are.”

“But they’ll be waiting for them.” Parker sniffled, rubbing her eyes.

“Rick knows what he’s doing. So does Daryl.” Glenn pulled Parker’s chin up so she was looking him in the eye. “You know they’ll find us. They always do.” Her lip trembled, but she nodded, wrapping her arms around herself whilst her brother rubbed her back and kissed the top of her head. “Come on, sit down.” Glenn gently held onto her arm and moved her across the room, far away from the walker body that was in the corner. Parker wanted to ask about it, she wanted to ask about Glenn’s beaten and bruised up face. But she couldn’t. She was too busy trying to calm herself down as well as deal with the fact she just led a bunch of mad men to her home. Her family. She bit her lip and pulled her knees to her chest once she was on the ground.

Glenn sat beside her, leaning his aching body against the wooden wall. He just stared at her for a long time, watching her quietly cry to herself. A thousand things were running through his mind, but only one thing was about to come out of his mouth.

“Parker, did he…” His voice trailed off, and she looked at him for a second before shaking her head.

“No.” She said firmly, almost proudly. “No, I swear. He barely even touched me.” She wiped at her eyes, slowly starting to realise that crying on the floor wasn’t going to help. She straightened her back and sighed.

“You were so...scared.” Glenn said. “I thought-”

“There’s something I never told you.” She interrupted. Glenn frowned, but waited for her to continue talking. “You remember...when Carl and I were taken by those rednecks in the woods?” She asked quietly. “When we stayed in that mansion for a few weeks?”

“Yeah.” Her brother said.

“The men that took us...they were called Scotty and Jed.” She said grimly, both men’s faces popping into her head and making her skin crawl. “They had this cabin in the forest, I don’t know where. It was far. It was quiet. Perfect for them.” Parker paused, realising what she was about to tell her brother, but also realised that she had to tell somebody. She’d go insane otherwise. “They threw Carl and I into the basement and locked us down there; it was only for an hour or so I think but it felt longer. There was this girl down there, her name was Martha. She had been down there a lot longer than us.”

“Why?” Glenn asked, confused.

“They were...using her.” Parker stifled out in disgust. “She was completely crazy, one minute she was wanting to escape the next she’d be threatening to kill Carl and me. She was a mess. But they did that to her. Kept her locked in that basement, only taking her out to-” She stopped herself, before slowly looking at her shaking hands. “When they took me out...they said they were going to take turns.”

“Park-”

“Please...don’t.” She begged, closing her eyes briefly. “Please don’t talk until I’ve finished I...I need to do this.” Glenn hesitated, but nodded nonetheless. “They said they’d take turns with me. Jed, he was bigger, fatter, he sat in the corner. Scotty tied me up and threw me onto the bed. He kept calling me ‘pretty girl’, as if I’d like it. And then he got on me on my knees and…” She let out a shaky breath as she heard Glenn let out a sob.

“Oh my god..” He whimpered, hiding his face in his hands and that set Parker off instantly.

“He didn’t rape me.” She quivered. “Not...not properly he just...but I fought back. I hurt him before he could do anything else to me.”

“Jesus...Parker, oh my god.” Glenn was at a loss for words, but looked at his sister before pulling her into another hug. “I’m so sorry.” He sobbed. “I should have been there for you...I should have.”

“You couldn’t have done anything.” She said into his shoulder. She pulled away, sitting in front of him, and looked at her hands again. “I killed both of them and got Carl out before he saw anything. He was safe, and that was all that mattered.”

“But what about you?” Glenn asked.

“I was safe too. I found you and Daryl and Rick and we went back. I didn’t want to talk about it until now because...because I need you to know that I can take care of myself.” Glenn watched his sister for a long time, not saying anything. He didn’t know what to say anymore, not after this. “I almost forgot people used to be like that.” She said grimly. “You fight walkers for so long that you forget what people do.” Parker looked up at his beaten face and whimpered. “Look at what they did to you…”

“Doesn’t matter.” Glenn said, slowly starting to come to his senses. His anger was creeping back.

“Yes it does! It does to me, it does to Maggie!” Parker said. “What do you think she’d say if she saw you like this?” Glenn went quiet. Then Parker felt him look away from her and slowly start to stand up. She watched in silence as he got to his feet and slowly hobbled over to the walker in the corner of the room. Parker frowned as Glenn grabbed one of it’s arms, put a foot on its chest, and pulled as hard as he could. The sound of breaking bones and ripping flesh filled the air and Parker tried hard not to gag as the arm came clean off with a few tugs. Her brother stumbled back, but then put the bottom half of the walkers arm on the floor and slammed his foot into the elbow, breaking the skin and forcing the bone to pop out.

Parker got to her feet and walked over to him as Glenn peeled back the skin of the arm and yanked out bits of sharp bone, before throwing the arm to the side. With a determined look, and a bloodied hand, he handed the bone to his sister, and they shared a look of pure rage.

They weren’t staying here any longer.

***

It wasn’t long before they heard footsteps approaching their cell. The twins sat up and quickly hurried to the door, standing side by side to the left of it and holding their breath. Glenn looked at his sister and nodded at her, making sure she was ready. She just had to nod in return before the door opened and a man they hadn’t seen before walked in. Glenn yelled in his face and shoved him backwards, knocking him into Merle who had come with him. As Glenn went for Merle, Parker grabbed the other man and slammed him hard against the outside wall of the cell.

Without hesitation, and ignoring the look of horror on the man’s face, she stabbed the bone right up into his throat and into the back of his head. She threw him to the side, only to accidentally send the gun off, firing bullets left and right as the man fell to the ground.  
“Glenn!” She yelled as her brother was nearly caught in the crossfire, but he thankfully had Merle push him to the side just in time. Both men were on the floor and Parker quickly grabbed the now dead man’s gun, holding it to Merle’s head just as he tried to tackle her brother.

Merle got Glenn to the ground, holding him in an arm lock and putting his spiked hand across his neck. Parker cocked the gun and glared at him, aiming it right between his eyes.

“Let him go!” She shouted, and Merle looked up at her with a hard stare. Then he smiled.

“Okay.” He said nonchalantly, raising his hands in surrender. Parker then heard the click of a gun behind her and froze, she turned to see the Latino man from before aiming his own gun at her, and Merle jumped to his feet before grabbing the AK from her hands. “Give me that gun!” He spat, shoving her back towards the cell door. She watched Glenn helplessly on the floor as more men filed into the room, completely surrounding them. Merle chuckled, before grabbing Glenn and throwing him and Parker back into the cell.

“Nice try, kids. Now both of you, get on your knees.” He pushed the two of them into the centre of the room and shoved them to the ground. “Been great seeing you both again. Glad we could catch up.” Merle taunted. The rest of the men walked in and aimed their guns at them as a warning as Merle circled the twins. Glenn then reached his hand out to take his sister’s, and they looked at each other in defeat.

“Just keep looking at me.” Glenn said quietly, hoping that if she kept her eyes on his, it would calm her down.

“I love you.” She whispered, before someone threw a flour bag over her head, muffling her sobs. A few seconds later, Glenn saw the same darkness as a bag was placed over his head too. The twins were then dragged up by Merle and another man, getting them to their feet, before being slowly walked out of the cell and back into the hallway.

Parker looked down at her feet, wishing she could see where she was going, before a loud bang and a large cloud of smoke caused everyone to jump back. She fell to the ground as the man that was holding her was shoved to the side, and she yelped in pain as she fell badly on her leg. She twisted her body round, wanting to see what was going on, before she felt arms engulf her. She yelled out Glenn’s name and he yelled hers back, and the two struggled to see for a moment before someone ripped the bags away. Parker nearly fainted as she came face to face with Daryl Dixon, and stared at him.

“Daryl?” She breathed, but he didn’t say anything, just wrapped an arm around her and quickly led her out of the hallway and out a door, her brother being led by Rick and Oscar from the prison.

“Come on, move!” Rick ordered, leading the way with Glenn on his arm, and running out of whatever warehouse the twins had been locked up in. The group ran out into the street, seeing multiple people running in all directions.

“They must have heard the gunshots.” Oscar said just as Daryl felt Parker’s weight fall onto him.

“Shit, it’s my leg.” She breathed, feeling it start to throb badly under her jeans. Daryl grunted but quickly hoisted her up bridal style, and moving to the front of the group.

“You'll cover us?” He yelled out to Oscar as more gunshots rang out, and was relieved to get a nod instantly. “Don’t let go, and if you see someone, shoot ‘em.” Daryl said into Parker’s ear before taking off into a sprint after Rick and Glenn, Oscar following closely behind him.  
Parker suddenly noticed a woman she had never seen before running alongside Daryl, and she almost called out to her asking who she was, but Rick was already leading them into a random building before she could speak, kicking the door down and hurrying Glenn inside. Glenn tripped on the porch step and was sent hurtling to the ground in a heap, groaning and crying out as his ribs ached and his arms burnt. Parker quickly jumped from Daryl’s arms, much to his protest, and sank to her brother’s side.

“Are you okay?” She breathed out, already exhausted from running, as Oscar, Rick and Daryl all searched the room for any other people that might be inside.

“I’ll live.” Glenn grumbled, clutching at his side.

“How the hell did you guys find us?” Parker called out to the other men, only to get silence in return. “Where’s that woman?” Rick paused and looked around before cursing loudly.

“She was right behind us!” He spat, looking out through a curtain at the street outside.

“Maybe was she spotted?” Oscar suggested.

“Want me to go look for her?” Daryl offered, but Parker instantly shook her head.

“You are not going out there by yourself with those people!” She barked and Daryl nearly glared at her.

“She’s right, we gotta get her and Glenn out of here. Michonne is on her own now.” Rick said. Parker spotted a pile of clothes a few feet away from her and grabbed an oversized hoodie before helping Glenn into it.

“Daryl!” Glenn exclaimed. “This was Merle. He did this.”

“You saw him?” Rick asked in disbelief.

“Face to face.” Glenn said, shrugging the hoodie on over his wounds and wincing on every word. Parker looked up at Daryl who was standing over her and her brother, staring at them. “He threw a walker at me. He was going to execute us.”

“So...my brother’s this Governor?” Daryl asked his voice soft and confused, as if he didn’t want to believe any of this.

“No. He’s someone else, I think.” Parker said, her head starting to spin. “Merle’s his Lieutenant or something.” She slowly watched the light drain from Daryl’s eyes, and she felt her heart go out to him. “Daryl, I’m sorry.” She said gently.

“Does he know I’m still with you?” Daryl asked.

“He does now.” Glenn said in disappointment, turning to their leader. “Rick, I’m sorry. We told them where the prison was. We couldn’t hold out.”

“Don’t.” Rick said, crouching down to Glenn’s level. “No need to apologise.” He ran over to another window and checked it, still seeing people patrolling outside. They all head weapons, and he started to grind his teeth.

“They’re going to be looking for us.” Parker pointed out.

“Can you both walk?” Rick asked.

“I can, not sure about her.” Glenn said, slowly getting to his feet with Parker’s help. “She fell on her leg pretty bad.”

“No, don’t worry about me.” She shook her head. “I’ll be fine. I can move.”

“We’ve got a car a few miles out, you’ll be off your feet again soon.” Rick put an arm around Glenn and hoisted him up just as Daryl stormed over to them.

“Hey! If Merle’s around, I need to see him!” He exclaimed.

“Not now, we’re in hostile territory.” Rick disagreed, moving towards the door.

“He’s my brother!” Daryl protested, his face crumpling up in pain at the thought of just abandoning his brother all over again. “I ain’t-”

“Look at what he did!” Rick spat, pointing at both Glenn and Parker who were both silent during this whole exchange. “Look, we gotta get outta here now!”

“Maybe I can talk to him! Maybe I can work somethin’ out!”

“No, no, no! You’re not thinking straight!” Rick argued. “Look, no matter what they say, they’re hurt.” Daryl looked over Rick’s shoulder at Parker and her brother. Glenn could barely stand up and his face was wracked with pain. Parker was also struggling to just stand still. They had to go back…

“Glenn can barely walk, Parker isn’t doing so hot either. How are we gonna make it out if we get overrun by walkers or this Governor catches up to us? I need you!” Rick hissed. “Are you with me?” Daryl looked Rick in the eyes before looking back at Parker. She was biting her lip and he could tell she wanted to say something, maybe in his defence, maybe to scold him. Either way, he looked at his friend and nodded.

“Yeah.” He sighed. He then looked at the Rhee’s and nodded at Oscar. “You take Glenn, I’ll get Parker. Rick, stay by the door.” They all nodded, getting into place, and Daryl quickly grabbed another flash bang from their bag of supplies, tearing off the end and crouching near the door. Rick nodded at him before yanking it open. Daryl threw it as hard as he could letting it explode before scooping Parker back up into his arms and carrying her out the door after Rick who continued to lead the way with his gun. They stayed as far into the smoke as they could, firing left and right at any Woodbury residents that fought against them.

“You fire if you see any of ‘em, got it?” Daryl said to Parker, who was already looking over his shoulder and aiming the gun.

“Got it.” She fired, catching a man in the head first try. Daryl could have laughed out loud.

“That’s my girl.”

Rick quickly led the group across the street and into a nearby archway leading into a house, the gunfire was too close to them and they all need to reload their weapons again. Daryl put Parker down and reloaded his AK as she reloaded the small handgun she had on her, rounding the corner and firing off a few shots before crouching down next to her brother.

“Are you okay?” She asked and he grunted out a response. It was the best he could do, the kickback was starting to hurt his ribs to the point where he could hardly speak. Parker felt his pain, but knew he would just have to tough it out a little longer if they were going to make it out alive.

“We’ve gotta gun it to the wall!” Rick ordered.

“You guys go ahead. I’m gonna lay down some cover fire!” Daryl said, handing Glenn his gun back once it was reloaded.

“Like hell you are!” Parker yelled, firing some more shots. “You’re staying with us, this isn’t the time to split up!”

“It’s too hairy.” Daryl shook his head, grabbing a couple of grenades. “I’ll be right behind you.”

“You’re not going out there so shut up!” Parker barked, and yelled in frustration as a bullet hit the wall she hiding against and shattered a brick beside her head. She fired off more shots and cursed when she had to reload again. “You’re not leaving my sight.” She said bluntly, looking Daryl right in the eyes.

“Not now, kid.” He protested, strapping the grenades to his belt and standing up. Parker stood up with him on her shaky legs and put a hand on his chest, stopping him from moving.

“Daryl, I swear to god!” She spat, but he glared at her.

“This ain’t the time to argue with me!” He shouted in her face, and she stumbled back slightly, not expecting him to get so worked up. “Now move when I say so! Stick by your brother and get him to safety!” Daryl then ripped the end off more flash bangs and threw them into the street, waiting for them to explode before waving the others out. “Go, go!”

“Parker, come on!” Rick shouted, firing his gun as he dragged her and Glenn out from the archway. Oscar was right behind Parker and she had to look over his shoulder to look back at Daryl as he fired shots from where they had all just been.

“Daryl!” She cried out as bullets rained down upon him.

“Keep moving!” He yelled back, his voice getting further into the distance as she followed the others. Parker yanked herself from Rick’s grasp and tried to rush back, wanting to give Daryl cover, but her foot twinged in pain and she yelped, collapsing into Oscar who just picked her up and threw her over his shoulder.

“Put me down!” She screamed, looking up to try and find Daryl. But all she could see was smoke.

“This way!” Oscar shouted to the others, leading them over to a school bus that was parked just beside the main gate, giving them a perfect exit route. Rick stayed on the ground as Oscar placed Parker on the hood of the bus before jumping up there himself. He reached down to grab Glenn’s hand, pulling him up to where they were standing until Parker wrapped her arms around him.

Parker then shrieked as a bullet snagged Oscar right in the chest, sending him hurtling to the ground.

“No!” Glenn shouted, nearly toppling off the bus, but Parker grabbed him just in time. She looked up to see Rick standing over a body and she called out his name.

“Rick! RICK!”

“Parker! Come on!” Glenn shouted, but his sister looked away before firing a bullet into Oscar’s head. She refused to let anyone that saved her life come back as a walker. Parker then grabbed her brother and hauled him up to the top level of the bus, and the two looked down to make sure Rick was finally following them. Rick looked back just as he jumped onto the bus roof, only to see that Daryl was still in the middle of the town fighting off the rest of the residents.

“Daryl!” He called out and Parker sobbed as she saw him surrounding on the ground.

“We can’t leave him there!” She yelled at Rick but he could only shake his head and pull her off the side of the bus onto the ground along with her brother. He led the way down by the train tracks they had followed Michonne down, and quickly ducked behind a car. Glenn collapsed beside Parker’s feet and she hissed in pain before Rick shushed her.

“Get down!” He hissed and the three of them crouched quietly behind the vehicle, waiting to hear anything from the other side of the gate. But all they heard was silence, only seeing the remaining residents standing on the wall with torches shining in their direction.

“Come on, Daryl.” Rick begged under his breath.

“He said he’d follow us.” Parker spat. “Where the hell is he?!”

“He’s coming, I know he is.” Rick tried to reassure her, but Parker shook her head.

“I’m going back in there.” She said and grabbed her gun before moving back the way they had come, but she was stopped by rustling in the bushes nearby. Michonne slowly stood up, shocked to see the three of them looking at her, before Rick held his gun to her head and backed her up against the train car.

“Where the hell were you?” He demanded, and Parker raised her gun as well in defence. “Put your hands up. Turn around.” Michonne did as he asked and once she was facing Parker he took the katana on her back away, holding it in his left hand. Once she was disarmed, Rick lowered his gun. “Get what you came for?” He asked in disgust.

“Where are the rest of your people?” Michonne asked.

“They got Oscar.” Glenn spat.

“Daryl’s still in there.” Parker said. “Did you see him?” Michonne shook her head and Parker swore under her breath, walking up to Michonne and holding her gun higher. “If ANYTHING happens to him-”

“I brought you here to save them.” Michonne said, looking at Rick.

“Thanks for the help.” He said sarcastically.

“You’ll need help to get them back to the prison.” Michonne pointed out. “Or to go back in there for Daryl. Either way, you need me.”

“Then help us.” Parker hissed. Michonne looked at her, looked at her pain riddled face and her trembling hands. She nodded. She knew love when she saw it, and that was it.

“Follow me.”


End file.
